20 March 16 - 30 , 2018 VOL . 37 • ISS . 07

California has outlawed lead hunting ammo based on corrupt science . Now assembly member Bill Quirk of Hayward , Ca has put forth Assembly Bill 2787 that seeks to ban the use of lead fishing sinkers . Quirk has zero science backing up his claim that lead sinkers pose a danger to California wildlife .

Photo courtesy of BILL DICKSON , Sacramento .

California condors were dying because they were eating lead particles in big game kills .

Fast forward to 2010 and we learned that the so called “ science ” offered up by UC Santa Cruz was an utter lie . The only condors with lead in their systems got the lead by eating chips of lead based paint on a fire tower used as a roost . The university admitted to intentionally leaving this fact out of their 2007 paper .

So , you might be thinking with that revelation lead ammo can once again be used in the “ condor zone ”. Nope ! Instead the lead ammo ban has morphed into a state-wide ban on all lead hunting ammo . The ban has been put into effect incrementally with July 1 , 2019 being the effective date of the total statewide ban .

What has this ban meant for hunters ? First and foremost , it requires big game hunters to use copper ammo , which research has shown to be inferior to lead for quickly putting down big game animals .

Second , the copper ammo we are now forced to use is extremely expensive . For example , the rifle ammo I use for deer hunting went from $ 19 for a box of 20 copper jacketed lead rounds to $ 42 a box for 20 non-lead copper rounds . The shotgun shells I must now use for turkey hunting have gone from $ 2 per shell for copper plated lead to $ 5 a round for tungsten .

Again , keep in mind that this legislation is all based on a lie that was admitted to by the researchers , but that just doesn ’ t seem to matter … And this brings us back to fishing and Assembly Bill 2787 .

Assembly Bill 2787

This bill states “ A person shall not manufacture , sell , or purchase a fishing weight or sinker in California that has no cross section greater than or equal to two centimeters in length , is under 50 grams in mass , and contains more than 0.1 percent lead by weight .”

For those of us that work in inches and ounces , that ’ s about ¾ of an inch and about 1.75 ounces . So basically , this is aimed at folks fishing in freshwater primarily .

The bill was authored by an Assembly Member Bill Quirk of Hayward , California . I ’ ve called Mr . Quirk ’ s office for an interview , but have yet to receive a call back . I want to ask Mr . Quirk to give me some evidence , some science that demonstrates that lead sinkers are hurting people and / or wildlife in the state of California .

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He can ’ t because there isn ’ t any . Quirk ’ s justification are some studies that were conducted on the East Coast and Canada concerning loons . There is not one shred of evidence that the small lead sinkers and split shot the bill sets out to ban are damaging or injuring anything or anyone .

With Quirk a recipient of $ 22,600 in contributions from the oil industry , I ’ d also like to ask him if Assembly Bill 2787 isn ’ t just an opportunity for him to “ green wash himself ” much like Governor Brown did with banning the use of lead hunting ammo , while being an enthusiastic supporter of things like oil fracking specifically and the big oil in general .

I think I already know the answer to this one . I ’ m betting that Quirk wants to grow up to be a bootlicking tool of big oil with a “ green veneer ” just like Governor Brown ! To me Bill 2787 is one of the biggest threats to California Sportfishing that I ’ ve seen since joining the staff of the Fish Sniffer and it touches on classism .

The folks that will be most affected by this bill are bait anglers and based on observations I ’ ve made over my past 4 decades in the field , most of the bait fishing fraternity is made up of folks from medium to lower income groups . You see , the yachting crowd tends to prefer trolling for marlin in Cabo over drowning worms with split shot in a slough outside Stockton .

The group that the bill will affect the most is also the group that can least afford to pay for lead alternatives . The price increases I outlined for hunting ammo as a result of the lead ban will be replicated in the fishing tackle world if lead sinkers are outlawed .

As bad as a ban on lead sinkers would be , the really scary thing is that it would open the door to the ban of any and all fishing gear that contains any trace of lead . Have you noticed those lead warning labels on fishing tackle ?

They are on everything , even on spoons and things that contain only a trace amount of lead . If the flood gates open and this sinker ban turns into a full lead ban ( you know sort of like the condor zone big game ammo ban morphed into a state-wide hunting ammo ban ) we can kiss every package of fishing gear

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with a “ contains lead ” sticker on it goodbye . This would be devastating for both California anglers and the economy .

“ A full ban on fishing tackle containing lead was proposed a number of years ago and it was shelved . If the sinker ban legislation becomes law I ’ m afraid that a call for a total lead ban will be reignited . This may be just the beginning so it ’ s important to get involved ,” said Marko Mlikotin executive director of the California Sportfishing League . “ There is no scientific data that indicates a lead sinker ban is warranted . This is a classic example of legislation that offers a solution in search of a problem .”

What Can You Do ?

You can call Bill Quirk ’ s office in Sacramento at ( 916 ) 319-2020 and voice your concern . It also wouldn ’ t hurt to give your local representative a call or drop them an email too .

We all need to work together to dowse this fire before it really starts to burn ….

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