Washington State’s Lead Chemical Action Plan
September 19th, 2008
Yesterday I noted an NRA-ILA post about a potential ban on lead ammunition in Washington state. Here is part of what the NRA-ILA said:
The lead ammunition you use for hunting as well as target and competitive shooting will be banned from purchase, use and ownership in the state of Washington if the state’s Department of Ecology has its way.
Tonight I got a comment from Kathy Davis, who turns out to be the media contact for the Washington Dept. of Ecology’s Lead Chemical Action Plan:
Ecology’s plan does NOT recommend any new ban on lead ammunition. The agency wants to reduce lead in the environment to protect the health of people, and wildlife. The plan proposes working with hunters and shooters on a voluntary, educational program to promote the use of non-toxic alternatives to lead. Read the lead plan and our fact sheet about how the plan address ammunition on Ecology’s webpage.
And checking out the summary on the official Dept. of Ecology site seems to bear this out. Here are some excerpts:
The CAP does not include any recommendations to ban or regulate lead in any type of ammunition beyond current law. This includes all shotgun, rifle and handgun loads. Currently, lead shot is banned for hunting all waterfowl, coot, snipe, and in specific hunting areas (see below)…
The CAP is not a law or a regulation. It suggests ways for reducing sources of a specific toxic chemical, in this case lead. The draft Lead CAP calls for the use of non-toxic alternatives to lead ammunition wherever possible…
Non-toxic alternatives to lead ammunition are now available in most places. Ecology favors a voluntary, educational approach to promoting their use.
I remain skeptical of the end goal of at least some of those backing this plan, but it does seem plain, at least from this version, that the proposal does not call for any additional bans on lead ammo.
If anyone has more detailed knowledge about this issue, I’d love to hear from you.
Tags: WA
September 19th, 2008 at 9:25 pm
[...] UPDATE: Not so fast. See this post for an important update to this story. [...]
September 19th, 2008 at 10:33 pm
[...] Oh, Ohhh … wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerpt Yesterday I noted an NRA-ILA post about a potential ban on lead ammunition in Washington state. Here is part of what the NRA-ILA said: The lead ammunition you use for hunting as well as target and competitive shooting will be banned from purchase, use and ownership in the state of Washington if the state’s Department of Ecology has its way. Tonight I got a comment from Kathy Davis, who turns out to be the media contact for the Washington Dept. of Ecology’s Lead Chemical Action Plan: Ecology’ [...]
September 21st, 2008 at 2:09 am
[...] Washington State’s Lead Chemical Action PlanThe lead ammunition you use for hunting as well as target and competitive shooting will be banned from purchase, use and ownership in the state of Washington if the state’s Department of Ecology has its way. … [...]
September 22nd, 2008 at 8:58 am
[...] Gunpundit got a comment from Kathy Davis, head of the Washington State Department of Ecology Lead CAP (Chemical Action Plan), and she stated Ecology’s plan does NOT recommend any new ban on lead ammunition. The agency wants to reduce lead in the environment to protect the health of people, and wildlife. The plan proposes working with hunters and shooters on a voluntary, educational program to promote the use of non-toxic alternatives to lead. Read the lead plan and our fact sheet about how the plan address ammunition on Ecology’s webpage. [...]