AP file photo New rules on .22-caliber ammunition will apply only to areas where the endangered California condor roams, including the Big Sur area, above.
Posted on 12/10/2007 10:51:23 PM PST by neverdem
AP file photo New rules on .22-caliber ammunition will apply only to areas where the endangered California condor roams, including the Big Sur area, above.
SACRAMENTO — California hunting regulators Friday broadened a prohibition on lead bullets scheduled to take effect July 1, adding .22-caliber ammunition to the ban.
The new rules will apply only in those areas where the endangered California condor roams — generally, the coastal mountains from Monterey south to Ventura County and in the southern Sierra.
The action by the Fish and Game Commission follows enactment of a landmark law signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger this fall that bans the use of lead ammunition by deer hunters in the affected areas.
Lead poisoning is the leading cause of sickness and death among condors in the wild, and condor researchers say bullet fragments in the carcasses of fallen animals are the principal source of the poisoning.
Conservationists praised the regulations, adopted on a 3-1 vote.
"This is another victory for the California condor," said Graham Chisolm of Audubon California. "The commission took the right steps to ensure that the new law is implemented in a way that makes the most sense for both the condor and hunters."
"These regulations go above and beyond the scope of the law," said Pamela Flick, state program director for Defenders of Wildlife.
She noted that the law would have provided an exemption for .22-caliber ammunition, which is typically used to shoot non-game animals such as ground squirrels and black crows. Alternatives to lead ammunition for .22-caliber rifles is not yet commercially available.
Adrianna Shea, the commission's deputy executive director, said commissioners hope their action will spur manufacturers to produce nonlead alternatives. Copper bullets are already available for larger caliber rifles that are typically used for deer hunting.
She noted the dissenting vote of Commissioner Jim Kellogg was based solely on his objection to including .22-caliber ammunition in the ban.
Shea said the commission's action was independent from the law, and Friday's vote simply completed a regulatory process the commission initiated months ago.
The regulations also go one step beyond the law by banning not just the use but also the possession of lead ammunition in the affected areas. That distinction, she noted, will make it easier for wardens to enforce the ban.
Schwarzenegger in October signed AB 821 by Assemblyman Pedro Nava, D-Santa Barbara, over the objections of firearms manufacturers and gun-owner groups, including the National Rifle Association.
DU bullets hit harder than lead anyway. A little hard on a .22 barrel, but, HEY! If they don’t want lead....
Depleted uranium is a good substitute for lead ammunition. I think it’s pretty cheap too.
They love their buzzards in California. The conventional lead ammo isn’t really good for the shooter anyway so maybe this is a good thing. You can target shoot with those Disintegrators and use the Federal BallistiCleans for everything else. The price needs to come down a lot on both though.
Ya lost me on that one Bubba! Can you elaborate a bit?
And on a semi-related note:
A California man stood in front of the judge, having pled guilty to the charge of actually shooting, broiling and eating an American bald eagle, the judge said “do you have anything to say for yourself?”
The man sadly said “Yes your Honor, I do. I am ashamed of having eaten our national emblem, but I’ve been out of work for almost a year, my family is living with me in our station wagon after losing our house, and my kids were hungry so I used a .22 rifle to shoot that eagle. I’m sorry your Honor, but I did what I felt I had to do.”
The judge, moved by the sad story said “my God man, I cannot imagine what you and your family must be going through. I will adjudicate you as guilty, but suspend the fine and any jail time, you’re free to go.”
The man said gratefully “thank you your honor, I won’t do it again.” and as he began to leave the courtroom the judge said “just a moment, out of curiosity, what does a broiled bald eagle taste like anyway?”
The man said “ohhh, it’s hard to describe your Honor, I suppose it’s kind of like a cross between a spotted owl and a California Condor....”
:)
Get out NOW! Or prepare to lose all your weaponry, and ammo, and become a prospective felon!
This year marks the 20th year this Gold Rush family member had had enough and moved! Unfortunately, I landed in the Socialist state of Washington... (where at least they respect the 2nd amendment and issue Concealed Carry permits to anyone that doesn't have a felony/drug convictions!)
First a ban on certain rifles, then cartridge engraving bolt faces and firing pins, now a lead ban.
Just an attempt to make guns illegal without really “banning” them. Something Kali has been trying to do since the citizens turned down a gun ban way back in the early 1980’s.
I suppose a FMJ will kill a Condor just as easily as a lead bullet. It all depends on where you hit it.
What did the people who wrote the words “... shall not be abridged” really mean?
This has nothing to do with the Condor. Someone is wringing their hands because .22 ammo is so cheap, they feel it could be used in a massacre of sorts. unless you get off some lucky shots, .22 ammo is just going to piss someone off. I have seen epsidoes of real ER cases where a man shot himself in the mouth with a .22 gun and the round didn’t even penetrate his orbit.
The law as I read it means that even if one has possession of the lead .22 ammunition one is liable for arrest and prosecution...I guess one needs to just carry RPG’s in this area since they are deemed safer.
I didn’t know hunting was still allowed in CA. Good for them.
At indoor as well as outdoor ranges you can get some serious lead contamination.You get a lot of lead flying around and reclamation costs a bundle. When you fire, I think 1/5 of the lead from the round is discharged into the atmosphere. You do a lot of shooting, you are going to be breathing that stuff, gets on your hands clothes etc.
You see, the only lead isn’t in the bullet (projectile). Lead is also used to hold the controlled explosion chemicals of the primer together. When the primer explodes it releases lead into the air as well as some other nasty substances. I think antimony sulfide, mercury and barium nitrate are some of them depending on the primer compound the manufacturer uses.
I like those Disintegrator rounds for shooting at hard targets at a range. You don’t get any back-splash or ricochet with them if you hit a hard surface, but they will penetrate soft tissue. I don’t like the new lead-free rules they have at the ranges now because I have a lot of old weapons that I have rebuilt and refurbished and you can only find lead cartridges for them. So, ya have to take your .303 Enfields, Mosin Nagants, etc, out into the woods.
A .22 is high velocity it can really bounce around and tear you up. I think you have part of it right though, it is because the .22 ammo is very cheap. I don’t think they care about a massacre as much as just making it hard on gun owners, period. But as far as just making someone mad, put me in the column with the dudes that don’t want to be shot with anything. I had an old Marlin-Glenfield tube-feed when I was a kid and we would shoot that cheap ammo we got for 89 cents a box for hours. Make no mistake, a .22 rifle doesn’t have stopping power but it can kill you just as dead as a .44 or anything else.
What people wrote "shall not be abridged”??
Do you mean shall not be infringed?
There are way too many guns in the U.S. for the feds to confiscate them all.
If Mrs. Clinton wins and the dems continue to hold the senate and congress I look for them to make sales of ammo illegal.
Stock up and bury it in a place they won’t fine if the feds come in to your home to take away your guns and ammo like they did in Australia.
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