Act to protect wildlife from lead

We're confronted this week with more troubling evidence of the connection between lead shot and poisoned bald eagles.

A two-year study by federal biologists examining 168 dead eagles in Iowa, and three other Upper Midwest states found detectable concentrations of lead in nearly half. Twenty-one percent had concentrations considered lethal. Most specimens also showed physical signs of lead poisoning.

Researchers looking for a source of the lead studied gut piles left behind by deer hunters, and 36 percent were found to contain lead fragments. In states studied, gun hunters harvested more than 600,000 deer in 2012-13, so the scope of potential exposure is large.

'Here we have independent researchers reaching the same conclusions as everyone else who has studied lead poisoning in eagles,” Kay Neumann, executive director of Save Our Avian Resources, told The Gazette's Orlan Love. 'The really scary part,” she said, 'is that the Upper Mississippi is the focal point for wintering eagles in North America.”

The last time lead shot made news in Iowa, it provided ammo for a political battle. The state Natural Resources Commission voted to ban lead shot use for hunting mourning doves. Hunters and lawmakers cried foul, and Gov. Terry Branstad scrapped the rule by executive order.

During that debate, the dangers of lead shot were raised but swiftly discounted by opponents of the ban. The evidence, however, is becoming too compelling to be ignored.

It would be great if hunters voluntarily switched to non-toxic loads. Many have, and we believe many more will. But we think regulators, lawmakers and the governor have a duty to revisit the issue. We feel confident that all sides can come together and work out a solution that serves both the interests of hunters and the environment. But it's going to take strong leadership.

Our state flag flying over the Capitol bears the image of a bald eagle. It's high time the elected leaders inside take action to protect these majestic birds.

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