Great Lakes Bass Fishing Forum

We only have until September 15, 2010 to comment to the EPA to stop the petition by more misguided persons using bad conclusions and poor excuses for facts that asks the EPA to ban all lead in all fishing equipment.

This attempt of very questionable need and results would seriously harm the fishing industry and our favorite pastime at a very bad time!! I believe this ban would cost thousands of jobs, entire companies, cost all of us a lot more when we least need it and speed up the serious loss of participation in our outdoor sports.

The American Sportfishing Association (http://www.asafishing.org/government/pa_083110.html) has a Policy Alert (http://www.asafishing.org/government/pa_083110.html) up with a sample comment you can use, and a link to the comment page for the EPA on this issue. Also more instructions on additional actions you can quickly and easily take to make your voice heard when we all need it very bad!

Please take 5 minutes to take action and help yourself by protecting the sport we all love! http://www.asafishing.org/government/pa_083110.html

Here's the comment I submitted today:

As a life long angler who relies on the fishing industry for a living, I urge the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to dismiss the petition to ban lead in all fishing tackle.

The sweeping petition has many deficiencies including:

    * Misinformation on sinker use and loss
   
    * The actual impact to wild bird populations
   
    * The economic impact of higher cost raw materials and that EPA can only regulate the interstate commerce of lead fishing products under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and not the use or manufacture.

As stewards of our nation's natural resources, the sportfishing industry continues to seek new developments to minimize our environmental impact. In addition, the Sportfishing industry pays some $115 million in federal excise taxes each year for fisheries restoration.

I am concerned that the results sought by the petitioners greatly exaggerate the biological impacts on waterfowl; ignore the significant economic impacts to anglers, the industry and to fisheries management; and underestimate the potential impact of human health hazards when anglers seek to produce their own fishing sinkers.

In this very tough economy, especially in my home state of Michigan, the last thing we need is something that will cost even more jobs in a cascading affect on the industry. Great increase in cost of tackle will drive even more people out of fishing, permanently or temporarily stop many products from being made and force smaller companies and innovators to quit, all costing more jobs, and lowering the critical amount of excise taxes collected needed to provide more protection than any ban on lead would provide to fish and wildlife.

In short, I find the proposal lacking scientific rigor and common sense, and urge you to reject the petition.

Dan Kimmel
GreatLakesBass.com Owner
810-433-BASS

I just went to the site and gave my comments, as well.

Frank-O

Thank you very much!