An exceptionally dry year in Canada fuels Minnesota's smoky summer

<p>The smoky summer of 2025 has produced a near record number of air quality alerts for Minnesota. </p><br/><p>Most of this summer smoke has drifted in from these massive Canadian wildfires where more than 16 million acres of forest has burned in Canada this year.</p><br/><p>MPR News chief meteorologist Paul Huttner talked with Matthew Taraldsen, a meteorologist with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), about poor air quality and reason behind the state’s smoke-filled summers.</p><br/><p><em>The following has been lightly edited for clarity. Listen to the full conversation by clicking the player button above or subscribe to the Climate Cast podcast. </em></p><br/><h2 id="h2_first%2C_some_good_news._the_smoke_has_drifted_away%2C_and_there%E2%80%99s_the_possibility_of_rain_in_some_canadian_wildfire_zones._can_that_possibly_limit_our_smoke_over_the_next_week_or_two%3F_">First, some good news. The smoke has drifted away, and there’s the possibility of rain in some Canadian wildfi...