Both the Alberta Sustainable Resource Development (ASRD) and the forest industry within
Alberta voiced concerns over debris burning in Alberta. ASRD views the debris as a fire hazard, both as ignition points and as a result of wildfires moving into the unburned debris. Industry is concerned over the potential liability from escaped pile fires. The overall risk posed by unburned top-piles, either as ignition points or for the hazard they represent as concentrations of fuel, has not been previously quantified. ASRD approached FERIC to undertake an analysis using the provincial fire history database to determine if unburned top piles constitute a problem as potential ignition points or as areas that pose other fire control problems..