New poll: 86% of people in Canada want Ottawa to curb online disinformation during extreme weather events
Montreal | Traditional and Unceded Territory of the Kanien’kehá:ka People | October 30, 2025 — On the eve of COP30 climate talks, an overwhelming majority of people in Canada want the federal government to join international efforts to crack down on climate disinformation, according to new polling from the Media Ecosystem Observatory at McGill University.
The findings come as a group of 15 civil society organizations — including the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE), Équiterre, and other health, academic and environmental organizations — sent a joint letter calling on Ottawa to join the Global Initiative for Information Integrity on Climate Change. This United Nations- and UNESCO-backed effort to combat online disinformation is putting information integrity in the global spotlight for the first time at COP30 in November.
The need for stronger safeguards was alarmingly clear during Canada’s recent wildfire seasons, when conspiracy theories about arson and forest management circulated freely and rapidly, hindering firefighters and evacuations.
“As physicians, we’re left picking up the pieces when climate disinformation costs health and lives,” said Dr. Melissa Lem, president of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. “During wildfires, floods and heatwaves, false information spreads faster than facts, leaving people unable to protect themselves. Like toxic air and water pollution, information pollution threatens our health and safety. Canadians clearly want our government to tackle this threat.”
The Observatory’s new poll found 86% of people in Canada agreed that the government should require social media companies to ensure that information shared on their platforms is accurate and not promote disinformation during extreme weather events.
The poll also found that:
- 78% of Canadians are concerned about online disinformation about climate change.
- 78% are concerned about disinformation circulating online during extreme weather events such as wildfires and floods.
- 82% want Canada to join global initiatives to strengthen information integrity on social media.
“By supporting the fight against climate disinformation, Canada can confront a system that has, for far too long, been free to delay climate action, endanger entire populations, and undermine our collective achievements, hard-won over decades,” said Charles-Édouard Têtu, climate and energy analyst at Équiterre. “Like the tobacco industry before it, the fossil fuel industry is ready to burn every last thing we cherish to make a profit, doing so on public health’s back. The Canadian government should follow the overwhelming will of its citizens and join this global initiative to stop disinformation.”
The United Kingdom, Spain, and France are among the countries that have already signed on to the information integrity initiative. By joining, Canada would commit to developing policies that expose climate disinformation, safeguard journalists and researchers investigating climate issues, and support informed global climate action.
Additional Quotes
Dr. Joe Vipond, emergency physician, Calgary, and past president of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment:
“It’s no accident Canadians’ information environment is increasingly polluted with disinformation. Bad actors are spreading lies to protect fossil fuel interests and delay the inevitable transition to clean energy. This weakens public resolve at a crucial moment, when we need courageous policy decisions to steer us away from the climate and health crises caused by burning fossil fuels. Our government must defend the truth and hold those spreading lies to account.”
Dr. Melissa Lem, family physician, Vancouver, and president of Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment:
“This September, when wildfire smoke made Vancouver’s air quality the worst of any major city in the world, I was alarmed to see people out running and pushing strollers. I wondered how many of them had been misled by disinformation circulating online, which downplays the health risks of wildfire smoke and denies the role of climate change. To prevent our healthcare system from buckling under year-after-year of smoke-related illness, Canada needs to stop the spread of disinformation about the health harms—and root causes—of climate disasters.”
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Resources
- Poll results
- Open letter
- United Nations: Global Initiative for Information Integrity on Climate Change
Media contacts
Megan Wilde
Communications Manager, Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment
647-762-9168 | media@cape.ca
Élisabeth Labelle
Chargé de communication, Équiterre
(514) 605-2000 | elabelle@equiterre.org