The REAL Debate over Lead-based Ammunition
Up until this point the debate over lead-based rifle ammunition has revolved around the question of a ban on the use of the product. As you’ll see in this video, biologists and hunters are trying to shift this debate away from concerns over banning lead ammo and instead focus on realistic ways to address the issue of lead poisoning in wildlife. Watch hunter and biologist Chris Parish try to convince Lawrence Keane, vice president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, to support voluntary non-lead ammunition programs.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rejected a petition to regulate (not ban) the use of lead-based ammunition on Monday of this week, April 9, 2012. This petition has been highly controversial and polarizing, with the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) claiming that it is an attempt to end hunting. With the rejection of the petition, the NSSF and other groups that represent the ammunition industry have claimed victory. For those of us who understand how serious the lead poisoning issue is for wildlife – what comes next? Do we wait around for the Center for Biological Diversity to file their lawsuit against the EPA and hope that the results are different than they were in 2010?
X-ray of a deer shot with lead-based ammo
The reality of the situation is that the EPA’s rejection of this recent petition was no surprise. The EPA simply does not have the political willpower to address this difficult issue head-on. The real solution is hunter education. Why is it that the majority of hunters continue to use lead-based ammo? Because they are completely unaware of the extent to which lead-based bullets fragment when they pass through an animal. Most hunters have never seen an x-ray of the deer or elk that they harvested which contains, on average, 140 almost microscopic fragments of lead. By leaving their gutpiles out in the field, hunters are playing an active role in the ecosystem and providing a food source for a multitude of scavenging species. Most hunters have never seen an x-ray of this gutpile so they don’t understand that when scavengers feed on it they are getting a potentially lethal dose of lead.
X-ray of a deer gutpile containing lead bullet fragments
Let’s look at what happened in California when lead-based ammo was banned from use within the range of the California condor. This ban went into effect before ANY hunter outreach or education programs had been implemented. The result – a whole lot of angry and uninformed hunters who continued to use lead-based ammunition despite the ban. In recent years a number of individuals and organizations in California have stepped up with outreach programs that teach hunters about the detrimental effects of lead ammo use and the benefits of switching to a non-lead alternative. Would the ban have been more effective if these outreach programs had been implemented beforehand? Ask anyone involved in outreach for this issue in California and the answer will be a resounding, YES!
Expansion of a solid copper bullet compared to a lead-based bullet
So should we be disappointed that the EPA rejected this recent petition? Absolutely not. The education programs MUST come first. Hunters are America’s greatest conservationists and are very willing to switch to a non-lead alternative if they are given the facts about the issue and treated with the respect they deserve. Let’s compare the situation in Northern Arizona with what happened in California. While California was legislating a ban on lead ammo use, the Arizona Game and Fish Department was working on implementing a voluntary non-lead ammunition program. Every hunter who drew a tag on the Kaibab Plateau in Arizona was given two free boxes of non-lead ammunition. A team of game wardens, biologists and volunteers then spent the entirety of the hunting season in the field, talking to hunters face-to-face about the issue. Within two years more than 80% of hunters on the Kaibab were voluntarily using non-lead ammo. If lead-based ammunition were to be banned on the Kaibab Plateau tomorrow, there would be no controversy, because everyone is already using copper. This is the model for how to address the lead ammunition issue on a national scale. Outreach and education FIRST – regulation and bans on the product can come later.
This is the REAL debate over lead ammunition. We need to stop fighting over the validity of the science behind fragmentation – everyone knows that lead bullets fragment and anyone who claims that these fragments don’t poison wildlife hasn’t read the scientific literature. The real debate remains – what is the most effective way to address the issue? I would argue that by focusing on hunter education rather than litigation, a great deal more will be accomplished.
1 Comment
Joe 12 years ago
As an avid collector of various forms of firearms I would state that hunting uses relatively very few rounds. Many hunters purchase extremely expensive rounds for the expressed purpose of their hunt, so purchasing an expensive copper bullet is hardly any different.
Educating hunters about possible dangers regarding lead in the ecosystem, coupled with the knowledge that their cheaper lead bullets can still be purchased and used while not hunting may turn a tide. The key to this issue is to realize that we as gun owners don’t want to be priced out of our hobby, right, or whatever else we may feel we are entitled to. Keeping a cheaper solution available for practice and self defense is key to swaying the opinion of the average gun owner.
Always keep in mind that many gun owners (myself included) view gun ownership as well as bullet ownership as a right for one very simple reason – it is number 2 in the bill of rights. Since it’s viewed as a right, you have to be careful with legislation. Hunting is not a right laid out in the constitution. The use of harmful ammunition could therefore be argued. I’m no lawyer so I’m not sure where the courts would go on that one, but it seems to me that restricting to copper-only bullets after hunter opinion is swayed based on education is within the rational realm.
Hope this helps – I will certainly think twice now about utilizing lead based bullets while hunting.