Firearms industry responds to petition filed with EPA seeking to ban lead ammunition and fishing tackle

The National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade association for the firearms, ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industry, stated its opposition to a petition filed Tuesday with the Environmental Protection Agency seeking to ban the use of lead in ammunition and fishing tackle.

"There is simply no scientific evidence that the use of traditional ammunition is having an adverse impact on wildlife populations that would require restricting or banning the use of traditional ammunition beyond current limitations, such as the scientifically based restriction on waterfowl hunting," NSSF President Steve Sanetti said in a press release. Using lead ammunition for waterfowl hunting already is banned nationally and in California is not allowed when big-game hunting in areas designated as California condor range.

Filed by several environmental groups, including the Center for Biological Diversity, the American Bird Conservancy and the Assn. of Avian Veterinarians, the petition claims that traditional bullets used by hunters are inconsistent with the Toxic Substance Control Act and that such ammo poses a danger to wildlife, in particular raptors, that may feed on unrecovered game in the field. The EPA has 90 days to issue a ruling that it will either accept or reject the petition.

NSSF also expressed its concerns over the possible ramifications such a ban would have on wildlife conservation. According to the group, a federal excise tax that manufacturers pay on the sale of ammunition is a primary source of wildlife conservation funding.

"Needlessly restricting or banning traditional ammunition absent sound science will hurt wildlife conservation efforts as fewer hunters take to the field," said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF senior vice president and general counsel. "Hunters and their ammunition have done more for wildlife than the Center for Biological Diversity ever will."

-- Kelly Burgess

twitter.com/latimesoutposts

Photo: Ammunition for sale at the Los Angeles Gun Club. Credit: Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Hilary]

That is a lot of ammo for sale! I think banning lead is a great idea. That would be so much better for our environment!

[Hunter]

Ben Ezra,
Bingo!
You hit the nail on the head.
The overwhelming majority of ammunition sold in the US is NOT used for hunting.
Not only is it used for recreational and competitive target shooting, but a large portion is purchased for "home defense" guns, and is never discharged at all.
A competitive clay target shooter may go through more rounds in a single weekend tournament than a deer hunter will shoot in a lifetime.
One large multi-state ammunition retailer sells more rounds of just 9mm [pistol] ammunition in a single month than it sells of all standard deer calibers [30-30, 270, 30-06] combined in a full year.
No matter what the smokescreen is, this is NOT about hunting.

[benEzra]

One fact that seems to be missing here is that 99.99% of ammunition sold annually in the United States is used for recreational and competitive target shooting, NOT hunting. Only a small minority of gun owners are hunters, and a competitive shooter may fire more rounds in a single match than a deer hunter will fire in a decade of hunting trips. Using hunting as a pretext to ban lead in all ammunition is a very flimsy cover indeed.

It would be a very simple matter, if lead in hunting ammunition were deemed a problem, to require that the small minority of gun owners who hunt must use non-lead bullets. But if the petition seeks to ban lead in all ammunition, then this is not about hunting at all---it is about pricing ammunition out of the reach of the "little people."

[Dan]

If you look up one of the groups. You will find it is center of biological diversity. Which is not an environmental group, but rather a lawfirm whose whole business is filing environmental lawsuits.
If you look at thier staff, for every scientists, they have 3 staff attorneys and at least one fundraiser or publicists.
They make they money either by winning attorneys fees on these lawsuits, or getting reimbursed for attorneys fees under federal law for filing environmental lawsuits.

[Bob Johns]

I said in an earlier response that waterfowl hunting hasn't missed a beat in the 20 years since lead was banned for waterfowl hunting in 1991. Here are the numbers to back that up: according to the U.S. Fish and Wildllife service, in 1989-90 (the last year BEFORE the lead ban went into effect), about 1.4 million duck stamps were sold at $12.50 per stamp. Now, 20 years later, they are selling about 1.8 million per year at $15 per stamp. That's a little under a 30 percent increase despite an increase in the cost of the stamp. Hunting continued unabated after the 1991 ban, it will continue unabated if this ban is approved as well.

[Bob Johns]

The point is that we are not opposed to hunting. The hunting community does many good things related to conservation. Kudos.What we are opposed to is the COLLATERAL DAMAGE from hunting with lead bullets. The poisoning of millions of non-targeted wildlife is documented in legions of scientific publications -- and it is not OK. Take responsibility. Get rid of the lead. The annual, highly documented, poisoning of scores of bald eagles, our national symbol, is a national disgrace that could and should be stopped. The hunting community should be the ones leading this effort -- not us.

[Randy D in Providence NC]

If an animal eats another animal that has lead in it, the lead will pass through the bowels of the predator and will not hurt a thing. It isn't rocket science people. But coming from kalifornia, we shouldn't be surprised they would attempt something as ridiculous as this.

[WTF Over]

Jeff you are truly an idiot. First, that is NOT a "hunting group". Second, hunting will suffer, contrary to Bob Johns claim that duck hunting hasn't missed a beat since lead was banned for waterfowl, it has, I myself, and many, many others don't duck hunt anymore as it is too expensive to purchase steel shot.

I can virtually assure you that hunters and fishermen are not the major cause of lead entering the environment. Our 5 ounce bullets and lead weights mean nothing next to the lead in batteries, especially the batteries in your so called environmentally friendly hybrids. Granted they are a new phenomenon and it is unlikely that many have rotted away in junkyards yet, but if the environment is trashed due to lead toxicity it will most certainly be attributable to your 130lb batteries in your low emission cars.

[J fredrick]

I guess my whole family should be dead then. We've eaten a average of 5 deer per year for many years now on not one of them went willingly. The water fowl shot is bismith and costs about twice as much as regular shot. The whole point of this and micro stamping is to make ammunition as expensive as possible so when the 100% tax get levied aginst it a box of bullets that now cost 40 dollars will be 200 dollars plus. Make the bullets more expensive than the gun and you have effectivly enacted gun back door gun control. You tree huggin hippies are sure a sneeky bunch but we country folks are on to you. Watch this go nowhere, the Democrates don't need another nail for their coffin.

[Arnold]

so if birdshot lands on marshes.. the water helps the lead distribute to the food chain of fish and other birds... then they wonder why theres so much lead and mecury arround.

[Scott]

The studies showing the ill effects to humans of lead smattering from a bullet entering a deer was dis-proven by the government so it is curious as to why they would then want to ban it.

[Larry the Moron Guy]

Number 1: It's spelled Berkeley.
Number 2: Yes, it's perfectly logical that our government is wasting its time figuring out how to increase gun control when there are much bigger problems.

Put your tin foil hat away for another day.

[Larry The Cable Guy]

Boy are you people foolish. This is a wolf in sheep's clothing. If the Overlord Obama, Prince Harry & Princess Pelosi cant get the guns...they take away the ammo...DUH ! You Don't Have To Have A Law Degree From Berkley, Harvard or anywhere else to figure this one out...and here's you sign... Sorry Engvall couldnt resist

[Bob Johns]

Lead shot was banned for waterfowl hunting in 1991. Waterfowl hunting has not missed a beat in 20 years of using non lead ammo. Yet we heard the same "sky is falling arguments" that lead ammo wouldn't work and that waterfowl hunting would become a thing of the past. Didn't happen. If you want to see the science, click on the petition linked through either the www.abcbirds.org site or go to the cbd site. There are 473 scientific studies referenced for your reading. And look at the video of a lead poisoned bald eagle while you are at it.

[Chris Bogardus]

The lead shot is winding up in Eagles and other birds of prey. Lead also tends to wind up in venison when bullets shatter, this is a toxic hazard to the children of hunters, but not so much to normal adults. It is time to ban lead from most forms of hunting ammunition.

[John Taurus]

I can understand banning lead shot for hunting ducks as the lead ends up in the water and ducks or fish may consume it. However, regarding use on land and bullets for self-protection, it is a mockery, something to make bullets more expensive for no good reason.

[Harley Cassel]

This screwball stuff just never ends. They should ban some of these Groups as being dangerous to human activity.

[John Noon]

Jeff,

If the science is extensive, why haven't you cited any of it, instead of giving us biased websites?

[Jeff Miller]

The science on this issue is extensive. This initiative will not reduce excise tax revenues, which would continue to be collected on sales of non-lead ammunition. It will get an insanely toxic substance out of the food chain while allowing people to continue to enjoy hunting and fishing. That's why a hunting group is on the petition. Go to EndToxicLead.org and look at the videos and photos of lead poisoned bald eagles, swans, condors, loons, etc. to see what this initiative is really about. View the x-rays of deer shot with lead ammo and ask yourself if you want to eat meat contaminated with a snowstorm of toxic lead fragments. Go to the biologicaldiversity dot org web site and read the petition for yourself.