Number: 1984-04
WHEREAS, lead shot poisoning has been documented in waterfowl for more than a century; and
WHEREAS, an estimated two to three million waterfowl die annually from lead shot poisoning; and
WHEREAS, lead shot poisoning has been documented in a number of other wildlife species including loons, rails, godwits, California gulls, coots, gallinules, scaled and bobwhite quail, ring-necked pheasants, mourning doves, prairie falcons, kestrels, red-tailed hawks, and Andean condors; and
WHEREAS, lead shot poisoning has also been documented in our national symbol, the endangered bald eagle; and
WHEREAS, conversion to nontoxic shot for migratory bird hunting will eliminate the continued and unnecessary loss of waterfowl and other wildlife, including bald eagles, and other endangered species, to lead shot poisoning; and
WHEREAS, the National Wildlife Federation, by resolutions adopted in 1971, 1975, and 1979, supports the conversion from lead shot to nontoxic shot;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation, in annual meeting assembled March 15-18, 1984, in Atlanta, Georgia, urges that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the State fish and wildlife agencies take all necessary steps to eliminate lead shot poisoning in waterfowl, bald eagles, and other wildlife including, but not limited to, implementing nontoxic shot hunting zones in any area where lead deposition poses a significant threat to wildlife populations.