$1M fine proposed for careless fire starters in Alberta

It will likely be months before investigators narrow down the exact cause of the northern Alberta wildfires,which are still burning strong two weeks after chasing tens of thousands of residents out of Fort McMurray.

And while the province's minister of forestry won't flatout say it was human error that ignited the inferno, he's not ruling it out.

"We're seeing a few lightning strikes, but for the most part, there's only one other cause and that's human cause,"Oneil Carlier told the Calgary Eyeopener on Tuesday.

"Whether it's by accident or whatever that might be that is a large concern."

So much so,that hesupports the idea of slappingfire starters with much higher fines.

• Should the fines for starting wildfires in Alberta be raised from $5,000 to $100,000 for individuals and $1 million for corporations? Leave your thoughts in the comments section.

Right now, the maximum penalty for burning an outdoor fire without due care and attention is $5,000 for individuals and corporations.

Carliersaidthat's "not steep enough" and he wants the fine raised 200-fold for a corporation to a maximum of$1 million.

He also wants to see the penalty for an individual who starts a wildfire to increase to a maximum of$100,000.

"It's a good deterrent," said Carlier."I think that it's resonating with people. I think Albertans want to be safe, they want to keep themselves safe, their communities, their fellow citizens."

Forest act under review

All penalties for starting a wildfire are spelled out in Alberta'sForest and Prairie Protection Act, which is currently under review by the provincialgovernment.

"The courts deemed these fine levels to be inadequate to deal with the scale and impact of the offence," stateda summary of the review published in February.

According to the National Fire Database, about half of the 1,200fires reportedon average in Alberta everyyear are caused by humans. Lightning is the second-leading cause.

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