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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Lead is a potent neurotoxicant that is unsafe for
3humans, wildlife, and the environment; lead ammunition
4needlessly exposes humans and other animals to this
5life-threatening poison; the Centers for Disease Control
6states that there is no safe level of lead exposure; lead has
7been removed from various paints, gasolines, pipes, and many
8other items to protect human health and the environment; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Lead ammunition is a threat to wildlife; more than
10130 species, including humans, have been exposed to or killed
11by ingesting lead shot, bullet fragments, or prey contaminated
12with spent lead ammunition; animals can fall victim to spent
13lead ammunition through two avenues; primary poisoning occurs
14when an animal ingests spent ammunition directly from the
15environment, usually when foraging for food on the ground;
16secondary poisoning occurs when an animal consumes wounded or
17dead prey or scavenges gutpiles contaminated with lead
18ammunition left behind by hunters; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Lead ammunition is toxic; a single ingested
20shotgun pellet or bullet fragment is sufficient to cause brain
21damage in birds, resulting in inhibition of critical
22neuromuscular, auditory, and visual responses; lead poisoning
23can induce lethargy, blindness, paralysis of lungs and the

 

 

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1intestinal tract, various organ failure, seizure, and death in
2wild animals; and
 
3    WHEREAS, The effects of spent lead ammunition are evident
4in dove hunting; since doves are small and have an erratic
5flight path, it often takes an average of five to eight shots
6to hit the animal; according to the United States Fish and
7Wildlife Service, an estimated 15-20 million mourning doves are
8harvested annually; if every hunter is shooting with lead, this
9would equate to roughly 5.2-7 million pounds of lead dispersed
10into the environment every year; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Lead ammunition is a threat to human health; lead
12is a potent neurotoxin, for which no safe level of exposure has
13been identified; individuals who consume meat from animals
14killed with lead ammunition are at risk for lead exposure;
15several studies using x-ray imaging have shown that lead
16ammunition is highly fragmentable and nearly impossible to
17completely remove from meat; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Effective alternatives to lead ammunition are
19widely available and effective; for shot, the United States
20Fish and Wildlife Service has approved a dozen nontoxic shot
21types; steel, copper, and bismuth are among the most common
22non-lead materials and are readily available at major
23outfitters; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Ammunition regulations are effective; the
2mandated use of non-toxic ammunition has proven to be an
3extremely effective management approach to lead poisoning; in
41991, United States Fish and Wildlife Service required the use
5of non-lead shot for the hunting of waterfowl nationwide;
6within just six years, researchers found significant
7improvements in the blood and bone lead levels in a variety of
8waterfowl species; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Restrictions on ammunition are commonplace; 34
10states have increased restrictions on lead ammunition beyond
11the 1991 federal waterfowl regulation; as a result of its
12success, the National Park Service announced in 2009 that they
13would begin eliminating the use of lead ammunition; the United
14States Army has invested resources and intelligence toward
15creating and switching to non-toxic ammunition, citing
16environmental and animal welfare concerns; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Scientists resoundingly agree that spent lead
18ammunition poses a significant risk to human health and
19wildlife; toxicologists, veterinarians, pathologists,
20physicians, epidemiologists, biologists, and other experts
21have advised against the use of lead in ammunition due to its
22toxic effects; switching to non-lead ammunition is an easy way
23to protect wildlife and people from the dangers of spent lead

 

 

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1ammunition; therefore, be it
 
2    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
3HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
4we urge the General Assembly to support all efforts to restrict
5the use of lead shotshells to take wildlife.