Steel shot: the hard facts
When chatting with chums at the clay shooting club, or browsing internet shooting forums, it becomes clear that the current move away from lead shot for live quarry shooting is a hotly discussed topic.
Somewhat surprising, given that we are now two years down the road since nine major shooting organisations released their joint statement, is the number of comments revealing little understanding of the reasoning behind it. The joint statement called upon every individual and business involved with live quarry shooting to transition away from the use of lead shot (and single use plastics) within five years.
Sporting Gun readers will know why the nine associations took the decision to call for a voluntary phasing out of lead for live quarry shooting, being members and the topic covered here previously. It was a preemptive measure to allow a five-year window which would, hopefully, avoid an enforced ban being imposed earlier.
The risk of such a ban had increased with moves within Europe to ban the sale of meat containing lead into the food chain, under the auspices of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) and REACH with the express intention of minimising exposure to lead from food products.
As the UK must abide by the rules of markets they wish to remain involved with we cannot override such rules. Indeed there is now a UK REACH as a department of the wider HSE (www.hse.gov.uk/reach) to ensure UK manufacturers and suppliers comply with rules in all appropriate markets.
Sold down the river?
“It is not about whether eating lead shot game is particularly harmful.”
This is why some major UK game buyers and dealers, with much of their market being
