A car crosses the new Madawaska/Edmundston International Bridge seen from Edmundston, New Brunswick. The new bridge, which connects the two communities and countries, opened in June 2024. Brianna Soukup/Portland Press Herald

Two stated purposes of President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imports from Canada — which last week were paused for 30 days — are to force Canadian officials to stop the flow of fentanyl into the U.S. and deter illegal border crossings.

“Canada has played a central role in these challenges, including by failing to devote sufficient attention and resources or meaningfully coordinate with United States law enforcement partners to effectively stem the tide of illicit drugs,” Trump said in his executive order.

But Maine’s border with Canada plays a tiny role in both issues, especially the supply of the deadly street drug.

According to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, of the more than 21,000 pounds of fentanyl seized at all U.S. borders in fiscal 2024, 43 pounds, or 0.2%, were recovered at the northern border. Of those 43 pounds, 2.1 pounds were seized by agents assigned to the Boston field office that secures the border in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.

Prior to Trump’s announcement that he would levy 25% tariffs on Canadian imports, officials in Canada already had pledged to beef up enforcement of fentanyl production and trafficking. As a concession to pause the tariffs for 30 days, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also pledged to appoint a fentanyl czar, although that person’s primary job is to decrease overdoses inside Canada.

Eric Marquis, mayor of Edmundston, New Brunswick, which lies across the St. John River from northern Maine, said he was frustrated by Trump’s claims that Canada is responsible for fentanyl being smuggled into the U.S. when the facts don’t support that.

“He’s making it seem like Canada is a fentanyl paradise. I just don’t see that,” Marquis said.

Maine, like other northern border states, has seen an increase in what U.S. officials classify as encounters of noncitizens, most of which result in arrests or detention until deportation. But the number is still a fraction of what is seen in southern border areas. Maine’s totals are also far less than what has been seen in upstate New York and Vermont.

In 2022, there were 432 such encounters at the Maine border with Canada. In 2023, that more than doubled to 931, before dropping slightly last year to 844. Southern border states like Texas and Arizona have logged hundreds of thousands of encounters annually in recent years.

The nationalities of those trying to enter the country illegally from Canada are diverse, but officials have said more than half last year came from India. In many cases, the groups are small. One or two at a time. Just last week, border officials apprehended two Romanian nationals attempting to cross the border illegally in Aroostook County.

Last month, officials on the Maine side of the border installed additional concrete barriers to deter vehicles from driving across the border at unmanned locations. Juan Bernal, chief patrol agent for Maine, did not respond to an interview request but has said previously that the installation of barriers has contributed to fewer illegal crossings.

Canada has pledged to send more law enforcement officials to patrol the border as well, although that has been in the works since before Trump took office last month.

Despite the data that contradicts his rhetoric, Trump’s hard-line stance on immigration resonates with some living on Maine’s northern border, including Bob Campagna, a retired millworker from Madawaska.

“I have nothing against the migrants coming in, but let them come in the right way. By them crossing illegally, they’ve already committed a crime,” he said in an interview last week. “Things have to change. Canada and Mexico right now is open borders, and they let everybody in.”