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Get the lead out; John Poston must go

Last week I wrote about John Poston's vote against allowing the Minnesota DNR to regulate the use of lead shot on DNR lands.

 Alex Hering, who intends to take back the seat in the Minnesota Legislature that Rep. Poston currently warms wrote back. Here's what Hering said:

 "John Poston does not appear to represent Minnesotans or the health of Minnesota's people, wildlife or air, soil and water quality. Like getting the lead out, John Poston must go."

Poston does not represent Minnesotans or their environment because lead shot poses a health risk to those who use it, those who eat wild game shot with it, employees of firing ranges where lead shot is used, and wild animals - such as bald eagles, vultures, and fox - that consume the remains of animals injured or killed with lead shot.

 Alex sent me the link to a blog that explains many of these dangers. The blog also makes it clear that there are many alternatives to lead shot.
White tailed buck from Wikipedia
Here's part of the text from the blog article entitled "7 Reasons Why I Choose to Use Lead-free Ammunition":
".  . . it appears that there is significant evidence to suggest that consumption of wild game harvested by traditional lead bullets increases lead levels. Studies by both the North Dakota Department of Health (https://www.ndhealth.gov/lead/venison/Fact%20Sheet%20Blood%20Lead%20Level%20Study%20Results.pdf) and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources specifically recommend that children and pregnant women should not eat venison harvested with lead bullets. This is because younger children & pregnant women are especially vulnerable to lead exposure - according to the CDC, "No safe blood lead level in children has been identified." - 
"Taking these two items into consideration - that lead isn't safe and eating game taken with lead bullets increases levels of lead in the blood - it makes it really hard to continue to use lead bullets when hunting. I'm not saying that this choice is clear to anyone. Even if the research above overestimates the risk, if my family is planning on eating with me, I'm going to use lead free ammo. Just ponder this thought for a second… how much would you spend to limit the lead exposure to your family? We’ll talk about the costs in a bit, but I can assure you that this is one of the absolute cheapest ways to do so.

"One of the arguments I've heard against this risk is that since hunters traditionally cut out the wound channel because the meat from the wound channel isn't usable, doesn't that mean that they are cutting out the lead fragments? The answer is no. Most hunting bullets are traveling at such a high speed that when they hit the target, traditional lead bullets often lose >50% of its weight during impact, splintering into incredibly small pieces. In the Minnesota Bullet Fragmentation Study, they found that, on average, lead bullet fragments were found up to 11 inches away from the wound channel. Because these particles are incredibly small, they are not noticeable during normal eating or inspection of the meat.'
It seems that John Poston put Minnesotans at risk for his misguided belief the the DNR shouldn't make rules about what takes place on DNR land.

 -- Tim


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