S. Utah lead free ammo program

[gznokes]

Did anyone see this in the UT big game booklet? Its a voluntary program asking people not to use lead ammo in Southern Utah.

Maybe I'm paranoid but if you look to where this led (pun intended) in CA its a bit problematic for hunters, gun owners, and the cost of hunting.

Maybe if I hunt down there next year I'll ask them to send me a box of Barnes tipped triple shock for my .270. Those are good bullets.

I tried to look up the UWIN foundation providing the funds and can't find much about it.

Here is the direct quote from the booklet.

"Starting in 2010, hunters in Utah?s southernmost
deer and elk hunting units will have the opportunity to participate in a voluntary new program. It will allow hunters to obtain a free box of non-lead ammunition and to aid in the recovery of one of the world?s rarest birds.
This program is part of an effort to protect Utah?s growing population of California condors. Nearly extinct in the 1980s, the massive condors are highly susceptible to lead poisoning. Many condors have died after consuming lead ammunition fragments in carcasses and gut piles.
For years, the state of Arizona has worked with conservation organizations and retailers to provide free non-lead ammunition to hunters
who draw permits in condor country. Supported
by generous funding from the Utah Wildlife in Need (UWIN) foundation, Utah plans to launch a similar program in 2010.
In the meantime, hunters who wish to support the condor recovery effort can learn more about voluntary lead-reduction opportunities by contacting Division offices in Salt Lake City and Cedar City.
The Division hopes this effort will help the condor population continue its recovery. More information will be available as soon as the new program is finalized.

 

[manny15]

i just asked this Q in the product review today, wondering what any reloaders think, is this gonna be a problem or are they just as good a lead core bullets ?.......

 

[ktg]

If they're sending out Barnes Triple-shocks, they're better than lead bullets. Hmm, I'm thinking about doing some hunting in S. Utah.

 

[gznokes]

I shoot the barnes TSX and have found and I can get a consistent 1 MOA group with factory ammo. People rave about the terminal performance of this round but two of the slugs I recovered from an elk this year actually had a smaller frontal area than I would have expected and one was missing a petals. The other had all the petals but was munched in a manner that did not give it much more additional diameter than the original caliber.

 

[desertdeer]

I live and hunt in southern Utah and shoot a 30 378 so hopefully I can scam my way into an free box of shells. Might save me 100 plus dollars. Yea conservationists! Just kidding

 

[prohunter]

I shot this ammo this year because I live in CA. They proved to be very accurate and grouped well. I killed 2 deer with the ammo. there was NO mushrooming of the bullet. Pin hole going in and out. I wish I was offered a free box of ammo! It cost me $60/box.

 

[AZBuckSnort]

Just about all the major bullet manufacturers are introducing, or have introduced, non-toxic bullets such as the Barnes X and subsequent offspring the TSX & TTSX, the Nosler E-Tip, & the Hornady GMX abullet with a lot of promise for the rapidly growing crowd of hunters that like to shoot their game waaaaay out there.

I've had the good fortune to draw a few North of the Colorado River deer permits in AZ since the condor program has been implemented. I welcome the free ammo vouchers and have used them to obtain some really nice ammo for my rifles and muzzleoaders. I like traditional cup & core bullets (like the Sierra GameKing) but the current crop of monolithic non-lead bullets are super projectiles that kill game and produce fine accuracy in the rifles I've tried them in. The lone exception has been my 1980's vintage Winchester Model 70 in .270 Winchester caliber. I cannot get that rifle to shoot any of the Barnes bullets I've tried into a passable group.

The Southern Utah region is a legitimate condor use area so encouraging hunters to make the switch to non-lead projectiles seems reasonable. Now if they were asking northern region hunters to ditch their lead-core bullets you'd have to ask why as I haven't heard of any condors setting up nests in the mountains aroud Logan, have any of you?

 

[BrowningRage]

Maybe we should build a wall to keep the condor out... LOL Has anybody heard anything about the positive impact steel shot has had on the waterfowling here in Utah??? Of course not! There's no proof that it has done anything positive for the well-being of waterfowl, it's just a bunch of hullabaloo... So is this. How many condors can Utah possibly have??? 10? What are the chances of even seeing one let alone having one of them find and ingest lead ammunition... This is a laughable proposal!!! LOL

 

[peakfreak]

THis is total BS. How many gut piles have lead in them? Most bullets pass through or get stuck in the off side muscle, bone or hide. How do people buy into this crap. Thats like saying fish have high mercury levels because sunken cars and boats have mirrors on them and the fish are rubbing on them.

 

[west]

The lead can't be that big of a deal if Utah has a GROWING CONDOR POPULATION. I could see them asking people to stop using lead bullets if they had a DYING CONDOR POPULATION. I may sound to conspiracy theoryey(excuse my english) but i really think this non lead bullet thing is a scam.

 

[mulehorn]

Wonder if they would get suspicious if I asked for a free box of 416 Rigby! Hmmm... could save big time.

 

[gznokes]

Yeah, like I said, I'm a little paranoid about this. Some condors probably die because of lead poisoning when they ingest lead bullets.My concerns is that its probably not an old 165gr Remington core lokt. The lead probably comes from a jackrabbit with fifteen .22 slugs in it. This opens pandoras box because who wants to pay 50 cents or even 10 cents a round for their .22. If you follow this logic some might say the "non lead condor movement" is meant to be the death blow to the .22. If the .22 long rifle dies it is the death of youth hunting and shooting. If youth don't hunt and shoot there is no future of the sport.

I get concerned when I see the lengths some groups will go to mandate their solutions. Its only a matter of time before they start asking the govt/fish and game to pay for the ammo or just mandate non lead altogether.

The environmentalists know no boundaries when it comes to this type of rational. The polar bear is a good example of this. They claim the habitat is being diminshed because of global warming. The solution they claim is to shut down all the factories and cripple every economy on earth.

 

[predator]

I agree, since the area in which the condor is living is primarily Limited Entry.

So they want me to believe that less than 75 hunters are somehow affecting an entire population? Must be a whole lot of gutshot deer and elk with lead in their bellies, then, since everyone else would take all the meat.

WHATEVER. Goes right along with the 'register your ammo' stuff.