Event Report: Non-lead ammo availabl

Non-lead ammo available for hunters in condor part of CA Western Outdoor NewsPublished: May 23, 2012

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MONTEREY — In March of this year, Ventana Wildlife Society announced a free, non-lead ammunition giveaway for residents of Monterey and San Benito Counties and quickly discovered that the demand exhausted the supply. $37,000 worth of ammo went out in one day! Since then, they raised another $15,000 that can go toward non-lead bullets. The Monterey County Fish and Game Commission contributed $5,000 of this additional funding. The rest was made available by private individuals who care about hunting, ranching and wildlife.    Hunting and ranching has a long tradition in conservation and by using non-lead ammunition, we are continuing that tradition. Ventana Wildlife Society wildlife biologists are convinced that lead from spent ammunition is a major problem facing condors in the wild due to ingestion of lead fragments found in their food. They want to help hunters and ranchers to make a lasting switch to non-lead ammunition so that condors can survive in the wild on their own again. This is the reason why they're handing out free non-lead ammunition again! The Society has opened a raffle drawing to win two, free boxes of non-lead ammunition. They'll give out 100 orders (two boxes each) in May 2012 and another 100 orders in June 2012.   "If we could hand out free non-lead bullets to everyone, we would," said executive director Kelly Sorenson. "We decided a raffle was the best way to go to make it fair to all those interested in receiving nonlead ammunition in central California. To everyone making the switch to nonlead ammunition, whether on your own or with our help, cheers to you!" To submit your entry into the raffle, go to www.ventanaws.org/ammunition/.