Senator Durbin

[Guest tonym]

September 23, 2010

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you for contacting me to share your concerns about the regulation of fishing tackle. I appreciate hearing from you.

In August 2010, a number of environmental organizations filed a petition with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requesting the agency ban the production and sale of lead ammunition and fishing tackle under the Toxic Substances Control Act. The organizations contend that lead ammunition and fishing tackle harms both the environment and animals, which may mistakenly consume spent ammunition or lost fishing tackle.

The EPA announced on August 27, 2010, that it would deny the petition for a nationwide ban on lead ammunition. However, the EPA is still reviewing the petition to ban lead in fishing tackle. As a part of this process, the EPA accepted public comments on the proposed regulation of fishing tackle through September 15th.

 

 

I understand your concerns about the impact a ban on lead fishing tackle could have on recreational fisherman and will keep your views in mind as I continue to monitor this situation.

 

 

Thank you again for your message. Please feel free to stay in touch.

 

 

Sincerely,

Richard J. Durbin

United States Senator

 

 

RJD/hw

[Mike G]

When you fire bullets or shot charges, they go into the environment forever. When you cast a jig or spinnerbait, you retrieve it 99.9% of the time leaving no permanent mark on the environment. So it seems odd that they gave the pass to lead firearms munitions and still can't make up their minds about fishing tackle.

 

Besides, this whole concern surfaced when autopsies of dead water birds showed high levels of lead in the birds. It was hypothesized that this lead came from tiny shotgun shot that the birds picked up along with the small grit they regularly comsume to grind food in their crops. To beg the question, where else would it come from? Ignore the fact that we know that some municipal water supplies have naturally occuring lead content that exceeds safe levels. Yes, the case against lead munitions was not air tight.

 

My hat is off to the firearms industry lobby for doing a bang-up job leaving their supporters free to walk away from the debate. So the buck is passed to fishermen who are left under the threat of some costly regulations. I think the fishing industry was caught off guard assuming that if lead munitions were allowed lead fishing gear would also get a pass.

 

I got a chance to voice my opinion on this to my representatives through mailings from Barlows's and Cabela's. And I did. I hope everyone did. It would be a real irony if the original suspect, lead munitions, walked free while jigs and spinnerbaits took the rap. Even the smallest splitshot we use is larger that the suspected culprit birdshot. If lost lead sinkers and fishing lures are a real threat, there would be no loons or ducks left in Wisconsin.