Bill is bad, but so is lead

It looks like the lead is flying at the outdoor world from all sides.
On August 14th 2008 a Federal law was signed by President Bush making it illegal for dealers to sell any motorcylce or atv made for the youth market. The market is described in the law as those manufactured for youths 12 years and younger. AS OF FEBRUARY 10, 2009 THAT IS THE LAW OF THE LAND!
The law also bans the sale of replacement parts for these machines. In other words if it breaks it’s broke forever.
My first thought was how many kids have I seen or heard of chewing on a cylinder head on their bike or even a brake calliper?
Just what is going to happen when the youngster jumps on Dad’s 300 or 500 machine?
Come to think of it I’ve chewed on thousands of those little evil lead split shot. It just seemed a lot easier and quicker than leaning over and grabbing the pliers. I suppose it’s a good thing I never chewed on my atv.
Seriously, I agree with Jeff. Lead is bad stuff and at some point needs to go, just not overnight.

In case it wasn’t obvious the ban on the sale of atv’s and motorcylce’s for the 12 and under set is based on the machines LEAD CONTENT.

well we might as well get rid of lead core batteries,bullets,lead vests for xray machines, high power lines, sailboats. there is alot more things that kill worse then lead that maybe we should worry about. i bet more wildlife is affected by a power plant then is affected by all lead put together, should we get rid of those too.. wait uranium kills also, lets get rid of all bomb. humans kill more then any substance, i guess we should just get rid of all humans.

There is a huge difference from banning lead used in batteries compared to lead sinkers. Batteries are “controlled” and contained. The lead content from batteries remain contained while in use. Once they’re defective, they’re recycled through a controlled process. The lead sinker argument plays because the lead is directly exposed to the water and wildlife, much like lead in gasoline was exposed into the air prior to the 70’s. If we deny these environmental issues, we of all people (who enjoy the outdoors) appear careless and reckless. It’s inevitable no matter how anyone feels about this issue, the general public is educated enough to know the dangers of lead and we should be also. Having a bill that isn’t well though out enough to prevent economic hardship and other consequences, is another topic that needs to be addressed.

One thing this story forgot to mention…..

Sen. Heather Steans (D-Chicago) is a friend to HSUS.

Beware….......

Well said by all. This bill is in its infancy and does have some rough edges, but the concept will be well received by our legislators and the public. Pass or fail, we need to respectfully & professionally convey all of the economic burdens to the public.

The Illinois Sierra Club endorsed Sen. Steans in the past November election and you can check it out on their web site. Senator Steans is also the Vice-Chairperson of the Enviroment committee in the State legislature. In my opinion, this lead ban bill was hatched by the Illinois Sierra Club and put into action by Sen. Steans.

Lead is not the biggest enemy of birds. DDT and other commercial pesticides did more damage to the bird population than lead. When Congress outlawed DDT in the late 1960’s, the bird population slowly began to grow upward. Predator birds in this country have made a tremendous rebound. We now see bald eagles fishing on the Mississippi, Illinois, and Kankakee rivers. Therefore, it is the opinion of this author that lead deaths in birds are small compared to the damage that DDT and other commercial pesticides did.

Lead has been used for hundreds of years if it so bad why is there rabbits,deer, geese, ducks and most crttters still out there. The ones that are gone is mostly from loss of habitat. The joke is ole farmer Brown still can use hes chemicals that that most likely do ten times more harm to wild life than lead shot a sinker or paint on a kids moterbike. It just seems like some people just set around and think how they can save mankind. Lead is bad granted but there is whole lot more out there much worse. So I just wish people would just let us go fishin.

I apologize to Marc and anyone else on here who I have called an apologist to giving this bill consideration. I feel strongly that we as a country can’t take to much more government at this point, and I tend to fly off the handle at times. When I do call and write our legislators, I can assure you that I do not talk to them in such a way, as to not be a bad example to our community, and to not get on some “watch” list. And to further reiterate the point that ridiculous bills, laws, and taxes know no party lines, former Peoria Republican Rep. Ray LaHood is proposing that we tax people based on the amount of miles driven, where you drive, and when you drive, all registered by a government implanted GPS in your car.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/sns-ap-lahood-vehicle-mileage-tax,0,4225850.story

reddog140, thanks for the apology, but don’t let it get to you! We’ve all felt emotional about these issues and have had to vent. I sometimes “air out” my frustrations and then think about what I’ve said at a later time. It’s not always pretty, if you know what I mean

I also read that piece about LaHood today and don’t really know what to make from it. Times really are changing. Lets just hope we can stay on top of it all! This tax thing using GPS chip…Oh Boy!

I’ve been following the discussion here since presenting Jeff with the original lead story, and have read every single comment posted in every new headline posted on this blog.

Took every single comment to heart, and presented the challenges to Senator Steans that were sure to surface if a strong push was made on this bill.

ISA President Don Rego and myself met with Senator Steans today at a restaurant overlooking the Kankakee River to discuss the original bill that was presented.
The conversation was engaging, informative and focused on a common regard for the natural resources in Illinois held by our group and the Senator.

If there were any misconceptions on the intent of the bill, or the reasons it was produced, we can say with a great deal of certainty that a genuine concern for the overall well-being for wildlife, people and the resource was always the motivating factor.

I’m pleased to say that many of the original components are being reconsidered and/or rescinded in order to focus on a strong educational approach as to the dangers of lead.
The ISA will be a contributor to this educational approach on various levels, and follow the recommendations that are forthcoming from the IDNR and stakeholder groups that have provided valuable input into a serious issue with varying degrees of opinions and approaches.

Thanks to all of the comments here and on various blogs/message boards, the Senator has been able to get a clear picture of what is important to the sportsmen and women of Illinois.
Given the chance to take a pro-active stance on reducing the dangers of lead, it has become apparent that a usergroup that contributes $3.3 Million every single day to the economy in this state will take a serious look at traditional fishing methods and consider how we all might come together and make sound choices regarding an environment we all depend on for the future of our sport and the well-being of the wildlife that inhabit our watersheds.
We asked for the opportunity to take a chance at proving our devotion to these concerns as anglers and citizens, and that chance has been granted.

It wasn’t long ago that we wouldn’t have had the opportunity to have a seat at the table in determining policy that affects the rivers and streams we choose to spend a great deal of time among, but a new administration with a history of environmental stewardship has paved the way for every voice to be heard and recognized.
We have many reasons to be thankful and appreciative for a change.

Best Regards,
Mike Clifford
Conservation Director
Illinois Smallmouth Alliance

Here is the FGD answer to this problem.

Like Minnesota:

http://www.pca.state.mn.us/oea/reduce/sinkers.cfm

Thanks to the ISA member for the link.

Jason

You should have tossed her into the river with some lead shoes…....

jbncrunch, the Minnesota link is really nice.  Thanks for that.

Plan and simple, if you pay your bills, hunt or fish you are the bad guys. Real sportsmen listen, YOU have the target on your back. You should look and see what organizations help promote these whacko bills,(HINT)And some sportsmen are too blind to see it. If we Ban lead.. FINE THEN Let’s BAN ALL OF IT! Not just target folks that use it in it’s basic raw form. BRING IT ON! Let’s bring the economy to an even lower low.

Hooks are dangerous things too…are they next????

I cant say that lead does not kill wildlife, but maybe we need to let her be exposed to jigheads and lead sinkers and study her for the enviromental impact data needed to support this ludacris bill. We fishermen and women at least need time to exaust our resourses of lead sinkers if nothing else. I have enough sinkers to last me for quite some time assuming I lose some every trip and can afford to continue fishing. even if we have to throw away all of our lead fishing gear, this still will impact the enviroment as a whole by being put in landfills across Illinois. Anyone hve an idea of what percentages of wildlife is even affectedjy lead used in lead sinkers and jigheads?

By her I meant the senator from chicago.

Thanks for the post and your work, Mike C. I’m sure we will all be following this for some time.

Are they biting better now that the ice is out? Last time i was at norris lake we caught 2 fish.

Follow Nate’s advice after yesterday I can almost guarantee fishing will be fantastic the over the next couple days. I fished a private pond (yes I am sure that helped but…) yesterday and in 2 hours and almost 30 minutes I caught 18 largemouths fishing a bluegill pattern swimjig/swimbait combo purchased from Mr. Graham. The key was fishing the northern half of the pond around weeds. I began with 3 in the first 5 minutes before I even got in the canoe. I proceded to work from the eastern bank south and back to the northwest side of the pond. In that area (about an hour of fishing) I caught nothing. As soon as I got to the north side again Bang! The first 6 casts produced fish and then over the next 45 minutes or so caught 9 more along the north side of the pond. I assume it had a little extra warm water thanks to the strong southerly winds as there was a 3-5 degree difference in water temps. Needless to say I will be fishing again today after work and all day tomorrow.

Follow Nate’s advice after yesterday I can almost guarantee fishing will be fantastic the over the next couple days. I fished a private pond (yes I am sure that helped but…) yesterday and in 2 hours and almost 30 minutes I caught 18 largemouths. The key was fishing the northern half of the pond around weeds. I was fishing a bluegill pattern swimjig I bought from Mr. Graham. I began with 3 in the first 5 minutes before I even got in the canoe. I proceded to work from the eastern bank south and around to the northwest side of the pond. In that area (about an hour of fishing) I caught nothing. As soon as I got to the north side again Bang! The first 6 casts produced fish and then over the next 45 minutes or so caught 9 more along the north side of the pond. I assume it had a little extra warm water thanks to the strong southerly winds as there was a 3-5 degree difference in water temps. Needless to say I will be fishing again today after work and all day tomorrow.

you are funny . deleted my comment wow guess who’s never gonna call you guys again .

hi

wow child delete my post