As wildfire smoke fills the skies over Western Canada, British Columbia has issued Air Quality Warnings for significant portions of Central and Northern BC, as well as some areas further south – mirroring air quality advisories issued by Environment Canada.
As of Wednesday September 3rd, Air Quality Warnings for wildfire smoke were in effect for the North and South Peace regions, Fort Nelson, Williston, McGregor, Prince George, the Stuart – Nechako, Lakes District, North and South Cariboo, the Chilcotin and 100 mile regions. To the south, Air Quality Warnings also extend into the Fraser canyon, Whistler, the Sunshine Coast, Howe Sound, and the Manning – Skagit Valley regions.
Forecasted smoke patterns over BC’s North Coast for 7:00am Friday, September 5th, 2025 // Courtesy: Firesmoke.ca
Data from Firesmoke.ca, an online resource that uses satellites to track the movement of wildfire smoke through the atmosphere, shows that the smoke impacting Northern and Central BC originates from fire activity in the Cariboo region – which has flared up in recent days as a heat wave grips the province. That smoke from the Cariboo has also mixed with heavy smoke moving southwards from major fires burning in the Northwest Territories, impacting air quality in the Fort Nelson and Peace Districts. Meanwhile in the south, a number of fires burning across the border in Washington State have also contributed to air quality concerns for those in the Lower Mainland and Okanagan valley.
Forecasts show that the smoke will likely get worse overnight and into the coming days for those in the interior regions, with the worst air quality forecast to take place overnight Thursday and into Friday over parts of the Central interior and the North Coast, including Klemtu and Kitimat.
The Province says smoke haze will be present in most areas of the province until conditions improve, but weather patterns indicate the smoke should clear from the peace regions in the days ahead.
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