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LATE BAN ON LEAD FISHING TACKLE IRKS ANGLERS
On the day before President Barack Obama left office, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (FWS) issued an edict to ban lead fishing tackle and
ammunition from hundreds of thousands of acres of land and water managed
by that agency.
Executed without stakeholder input, the controversial action has sparked
outrage from fishing and hunting communities.
National Conservation Director Gene Gilliland said that B.A.S.S. “joins
our state fisheries management agency partners and American Sportfishing
Association in calling on the new administration and the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service to put a hold on the order.
“This 11th hour order, just hours before the new administration was to
take office, was an obvious attempt to push through an order that is
part of the previous administration’s environmental agenda without full
consultation among all the stakeholders.”
Scott Gudes, ASA’s vice president of government affairs, added, “The
sportfishing industry views this unilateral policy to ban lead fishing
tackle, which was developed without any input from the industry, other
angling organizations and state fish and wildlife agencies, as a
complete disregard for the economic and social impact it will have on
anglers and the recreational fishing industry.”
Signed by FWS Director Dan Ash, Order No. 219 requires “the use of
nontoxic ammunition and fishing tackle to the fullest extent practicable
for all activities on service lands, waters and facilities by January
2022, except as needed for law enforcement and safety uses, as provided
for in policy.”
Fortunately, action was taken by the new Trump administration the day
after the rule was issued that could hinder its effectiveness. A
memorandum issued from the White House to departments and agencies
announced a freeze on implementing new regulations, pending review.
Still, individual jurisdictions within FWS might choose to enforce the
rule.
For years, environmentalists have attempted to gain a complete ban on
lead ammunition and fishing tackle by filing lawsuits. They’ve done so,
Gilliland said, “despite the lack of a clear connection in many cases of
negative population-level impacts on fish and wildlife.”
But their arguments have been rejected by the courts. At the same time,
selective bans have been implemented where research suggests a need for
them, such as in some northern waters, where loons ingest lead shot.
“In the limited instances, where lead fishing tackle is demonstrated to
harm local wildlife populations, the sportfishing industry supports
actions to minimize or eliminate these impacts,” Gudes said. “However,
unnecessary and sweeping bans such as this Director’s Order will do
nothing to benefit wildlife populations and instead will penalize the
nation’s 46 million anglers and hurt recreational fishing-dependent
jobs.”
If not rescinded, it also will damage the partnership between the
federal agency and the states, according to Nick Wiley, president of the
Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. “This action flies squarely
in the face of a long and constructive tradition of states working in
partnership with the service to effectively manage fish and wildlife
resources,” he said.
“The Association views this order as a breach of trust and deeply
disappointing given that it was a complete surprise and there was no
current dialogue or input from state fish and wildlife agencies prior to
issuance.
It does a disservice to hunters and anglers, the firearms and angling
industries, and the many professionals on staff with the USFWS who
desire a trusting and transparent relationship with their state
partners.”
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