Mass banning the use of lead?

[matt]

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/hunting/condor/docs/nonlead-ammo-ca.pdf

I just found this, but not before sending the following e-mail on behalf of the NCL:

House Bill 783 AN ACT FOR A HEALTHY MASSACHUSETTS SAFER ALTERNATIVES TO TOXIC

Rep Poirier, Senator Timilty, Senator Brown,

You have signed onto this bill. Our concern of course is - Lead. Lead is used, as it has been for centuries, in the manufacture of ammunition. Other metals have been suggested and tried only to be proven to be more toxic than lead. Steel and other alternatives have recently been instituted for waterfowl hunting to reduce the “chance” that lead will contaminate the water supply.

Like I’ve said before, the Sportsmen and Women of Massachusetts are a conservation minded and environmentally friendly group, but what you must think through is the fact that this bill could be used to BAN lead ammunition altogether. If this ban should become reality it will have a very negative impact upon this group.

Forcing possibly expensive alternatives that…
a. Continue the erosion in numbers of those taking part in the hunting and fishing recreational activities thereby reducing the funds (through license purchases) to sustain the wildlife and other conservation efforts (land acquisition).
b. Possibly, and inadvertently increase the lethality of the replacement ammunition that might ultimately violate Federal armor piercing law due to its material construction.
I would be interested in receiving a response from each of you on this matter and ask that changes be made to protect the use of lead with respect to ammunition used for recreational sporting activities such as shooting, hunting, and fishing.

Respectfully,

My guess is a and b are the thinly vailed point of this bill... not an unintended byproduct...

kudos for taking the effort to send it off though!

 

[ronbok]

Barnes Bullets...the only game in town?

Most of the bullets appear to be made totally of copper. Using .223 Rem as an example:

Barnes Multi-Purpose Green Bullets 22 Caliber (224 Diameter) 55 Grain Box of 100
Product #: 747365
Our Price: $23.99

http://www.barnesbullets.com/

By comparison:

Sierra GameKing Bullets 22 Caliber (224 Diameter) 55 Grain Full Metal Jacket Boat Tail Box of 100
Product #: 156671
Our Price: $14.79

Winchester Bullets 22 Caliber (224 Diameter) 55 Grain Full Metal Jacket Boat Tail Bag of 100
Product #: 716400
Status: Out of Stock, Backorder OK
Our Price: $9.99

 

[vellnueve]

Time to stock up on steel core?

Everyone needs to take the time to write their reps.

 

[PaulD]

I just emailed my representative and I will follow up with a call.

Does anyone know when and if these bills are scheduled for a vote?

 

[pbearperry]

Law Enforcement

Yeah... it might be tough to enforce.. but it will make it a PITA to buy stuff here and most clubs will probably put some policy in place. Of course LE training will be exempt.

Believe it or not,a lot of Police Departments have stopped shooting lead bullets at their ranges for a couple of years.Many of them are practising with those frangible non toxic bullets.If this bill gets passed,it will really suck being us.

 

[IrishIron]

This is not only a very dangerous bill for us but many businesses

The legislature wants to move some kind of Safe Alternatives Bill so this threat needs to be taken seriously. No matter what form comes out it will be used to try to ban lead under the disguise that it is harmful to humans and the environment. The ban that took place in California was based on scientifically flawed experiments coupled with the fact that it could not be proven that the lead present in condors was in fact coming from ammunition. There are many places condors can be exposed to lead not to mention many of their nests in CA have been found to be lined with scrap metal that they have found.

This is a serious threat to gun owners, and ranges in MA. Lead along with the list of other supposedly "harmful" materials was removed from the original bill but the fact remains it will still be used to close down ranges and outlaw ammunition.

 

[Mikey]

Backdoor gun control.

 

[Pilgrim]

get ready to have rough riding cars and your tires wearing out in about 3 months. I can't imagine what they'll do to replace wheel weights.

Gold? It's about the only thing heavy enough.

 

[clearshot7]

MA Ban of Lead Ammunition?

I, too, received the notice from the NRA, and I have already sent an email to my House Rep (Jim Miceli). I have not reviewed the Senate bill (558) yet, but the House bill (783) lists 'lead' at the top of the list for a 'safer alternative.' This is scary stuff, and another way to shut down the 2nd amendment -- raise the price of ammo so much that legal gun owners will not be able to afford to shoot at ranges or hunt. Next step -- gun clubs will have to shut down due to members not renewing their membership. Please all, get going and contact your state reps and senators.

 

[Jaxon]

Welp, I sent emails to the sponsors as well as my local Rep. We'll see what happens.

 

[Major D Ret.]

No lead huh?

That means no batteries, no computers, no televisions, no telephones, nothing electrical period.

Ban lead and we go back to the caves.


Major D

 

[PaulD]

No lead huh?

That means no batteries, no computers, no televisions, no telephones, nothing electrical period.

Ban lead and we go back to the caves.


Major D

If you're talking about lead solder, it's already been banned in Europe.

 

[drgrant]

If you're talking about lead solder, it's already been banned in Europe.

I'll fathom a guess that the replacement costs twice as much and
is much harder to use?

-Mike

 

[MichaelJ]

Unbelievable... anyone know how VA is?

 

[dwarven1]

Folks... don't send email. Send snailmail - real paper letters. They pay MUCH more attention to them, or so I'm told. Phone calls also work...

 

[PaulD]

I'll fathom a guess that the replacement costs twice as much and
is much harder to use?

-Mike

The worst part is it's more brittle which leads to reliability problems.

 

[bfm]

I'll fathom a guess that the replacement costs twice as much and
is much harder to use?

-Mike

It has also lead to "whiskering" which is shorting out tons of eqiupment over there.

 

[PaulD]

It has also lead to "whiskering" which is shorting out tons of eqiupment over there.

Yeah, I heard that one too. Good call.

 

[EZEKIEL 25:17]

I guess that means no Hybrid cars either.

 

[PaulD]

I guess that means no Hybrid cars either.

All the hybrids use NiMH batteries afaik.

 

[GaryO]

i cant belive this SHIT!!!! just another attempt to regulate hunting and shooting out of existence. you bet your ass that cadillac deval would fully back this buch of crap. this would also end hunting deer with a flintlock and patched lead round ball and also primitive black powder shoots

You will have to go back and start packing muskets with really round stones.

I will be sending emails tonight to find where my Senator and Rep to find out where they stand on this issue.

 

[GaryO]

Folks... don't send email. Send snailmail - real paper letters. They pay MUCH more attention to them, or so I'm told. Phone calls also work...

Every time I email Senator Scott Brown he answers them personally.

 

[GOAL]

If anyone is interested, the link below is the report that the Toxic Use Reduction Institute (TURI) released last year. When questioned by the industry about the report's bad info, TURI's answer was that the ran out of time and money and had to publish something.

http://www.eoearth.org/article/Alternatives_for_significant_uses_of_lead_in_Massachusetts

 

[Coyote Whiskey]

Its me Dude
sent ya a PM

Dave, is that you?

 

[pbearperry]

new law banning lead and various other metals

If this bill passes will I be arrested because of the silver fillings in my teeth?I truly believe the bullet ban would be a tough one,however all of the gun ranges would probably be shut down,and if you used a poison bullet on a thug to protect yourself you would be charged then.Don't ya just love the Democratic Party of Massachusetts?

 

[gene]

This may be the last step in getting the hell out of this state. There is way too much stupidy for a rational human being to deal with anymore. Maybe it's time to sell and buy 200 acres in Maine or something.

 

[jrbtzx12r]

Folks... don't send email. Send snailmail - real paper letters. They pay MUCH more attention to them, or so I'm told. Phone calls also work...

Make sure you use a lead pencil, and note that you had to use paper to get their attention (since email didn't work), and now there's a forest without a tree because you had to use paper.

Two can play this tree huger game damn it!

 

[Executive]

just

 

[Major Blood]

Here is a link to a page on the Four Seasons website, complete with letters from two officials intimate with the bill stating that this will have no impact on lead bullets in MA:

http://fsguns.com/legislativealerts.html

Found this in about 30 seconds...sheesh, doesn't take much to get you guys riled up huh?

The NRA is really starting to remind me of Chicken Little...

 

[dwarven1]

From Susan Martin in Senator Pam Resor's office, in response to a phone call I made this afternoon:

The “action alert” sent out by the National Rifle Association this week has several significant inaccuracies.
The Safer Alternatives Bill, currently Senate Bill 2406, carefully crafted over the course of several years in a collaboration of legislators, scientists, business leaders, and environmental leaders, does not ban any chemicals. Instead, it sets up a process, to be administered by the Toxics Use Reduction Institute (TURI) of the University of Massachusetts Lowell, to study chemicals. These chemicals would be chosen for study entirely by a large, diverse advisory panel, made up of stakeholders from industry, environmental activism, children’s groups, and others. The chemicals have not been pre-selected. If it is determined that the chemical in question is harmful to health and/or safety, the next step would be to study whether there are feasible, cost-effective alternatives for each of the uses of that particular chemical. If there are no feasible alternatives, nothing happens. If there are, TURI would assist business in phasing in these alternatives. In sum, even if lead is identified as a harmful chemical and there is no reasonable alternative to lead in bullets, there would be no action taken to current practices and products.

This bill, in short, does not represent a “ban on all common rifle and handgun ammunition.”

I can't help but think that there's an awful lot of weasel room in the phrase "feasible, cost-effective alternatives for each of the uses of that particular chemical."