Photo: Facebook / Wembley Fire Department

By Shaun Penner

Cigarettes

Complaints of cigarette littering on the rise during fire season

Jun 3, 2019 | 12:45 PM

Concerns over smokers tossing their lit cigarettes out the window of their vehicles continues to be a concern for many Grande Prairie residents, as forest fires and dry conditions continue to plague Northern Alberta.

Social media posts suggest that many smokers are recklessly tossing their butts out the window as they drive, which can spark a grass or forest fire very easily.

Fire Prevention Officer with the City of Grande Prairie Trevor Schwabe says that you should never throw lit materials out of your vehicle at anytime.

“It’s alarming to see, for us as fire prevention officers, the amount of times that that happens within the city,” said Schwabe. “But it goes to say, with the fire ban in effect, that people should not discard their smoker’s material out the vehicle windows.”

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He further adds that it goes beyond a forest fire danger, in that being careless with the disposal of lit materials can cause damage to properties.

“We had approximately six house fires last year, started because of improper disposal of smoker’s material,” said Schwabe. “People just flicking them on the lawn or putting them in planters. That smolders and then causes the fire that spreads to the house, and then onto other houses.”

The Wembley Fire Department said in a Facebook post on May 22, that a cigarette was the possible culprit for a grass fire that started on Saskatoon Lake Rd.

A fine of $250 can be levied by enforcement agencies within the city for anyone that is caught tossing anything out of their vehicle windows. Those fines can be more when driving in other locations around the province, where tickets can reach as much as $1,000 for littering, depending on the jurisdiction you are in.

In the most extreme cases, where someone is found guilty of causing a forest fire, you can be fined up to $100,000, or face up to two years in prison.

Schwabe suggests that you should have an ashtray in your car, an example being one that fits in your cup holder. At home, having a sealed jar with sand in it is a safe way of disposing of your cigarettes.