Today, the Hunting and Wildlife Conservation Council recommended voluntary programs and science-based solutions to address use of lead ammunition on National Wildlife Refuges. SCI supports these recommendations, which focus on education and encouraging hunters to choose non-lead ammunition, where appropriate, available, and affordable. In addition, the HWCC recommended federal appropriations to help fund ammunition swap programs, and emphasized additional scientific research before any further regulatory decisions are made to prohibit use of traditional lead ammunition on federal lands. Finally, the HWCC recommended changes in the agency interpretation of federal law to permit, and incentivize, ammunition manufacturers to develop and bring to market alternative non-lead projectiles designed and intended by the manufactures for the hunting market. All of these recommendations are based in science, and reality—as opposed to across-the-board bans on the use of traditional ammunition, which SCI strongly opposes. Read the HWCC recommendations here.
HWCC recommends voluntary programs and further research to address use of lead ammunition.
