Just got an email from my friend, Jim Petterson.  As some of you may remember, Jim was the fella from the National Park Service who took me and Holly on a hog hunt down near Pinnacles National Park (you can read about my take here, and Holly’s report here), and then spent a good bit of time with us talking about the condor program and lead ammo issues. 

Jim’s perspective comes from a couple of places.  First, he’s a lifelong hunter.  I know, a lot of cynics out there are going to doubt this credential because of his involvement in the condor project, but after spending the better part of a day in the field with him, and having the opportunity to converse more via email, I’ll vouch for him any time.  He’s committed to the sport, and to a high ethical standard.  Like many of us, he believes the responsibility of hunters goes beyond basic safety and good manners.  We are supposed to be stewards of the environment, and part of that stewardship includes caring about all of the creatures out there, and not just the ones we shoot. 

His perspective is also shaped by his experience working with raptors and condors.  He cares a LOT about these birds… more than the average person… and he’ll be the first to say that this certainly tempers his attitude when it comes to the impacts of lead.  He has seen, first hand, the effects of lead poisoning in eagles and condors, and it affected him deeply.  As a result, he believes that we (hunters) should be doing everything reasonable to minimize our impacts on these birds.

Now let me take a quick aside, and say what I’ve said all along… that I believe the majority of the folks who are fighting so hard to save the condor and protect raptors are, like Jim, deeply committed to the birds, and not necessarily opposed to hunting (some hunt, and some don’t).  Sure, anti-hunting organizations have piled onto the bandwagon and even driven much of the debate well outside the realm of protecting the endangered birds, but don’t let that take away from the honest concerns that the bird advocates hold.  I’ll also add that Jim, and most of the other condor advocates have NEVER said that lead ammo is the ONLY source of the lead that’s affecting the birds. 

OK, back to the topic.

Jim’s email introduced a new website that he and several associates have been working on.  The site is intended to serve as a clearinghouse of information about lead ammo, lead-free ammo, and related issues.  Jim’s email said that the plan is to keep the site objective and informative, and from what I saw in my review of the site, they’ve done a pretty good job.  It’s just information, not editorializing or proselytizing about the “evils of lead ammo.” 

It’s still in the beginning stages, and I expect it’ll grow significantly as they continue to work on it.  There’s a whole lot of information out there.  I’d definitely recommend checking it out, and if lead ammo issues are of interest to you, bookmark it too.  There’s a guestbook feature as well, so you can leave your comments, suggestions, or ideas. 

Go on over and have a look.

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