It's Fishing Season:
Get Out Your Rods and Get Rid of Your Lead Tackle

By Dr. Wendy Sanborn, Conservation Project Coordinator

With spring, flowers -- and for some people fishing rods -- emerge.

Unfortunately, so does lead fishing tackle. Some 2,700 tons of lead fishing weights are sold every year in the United States. Lead split shot comprises 50% of the sinker market in the United States. These tiny, round BBs can be difficult to handle and anglers often lose several sinkers for each one successfully attached to the line. Furthermore, sinkers are lost when anglers cast or when they break their lines to free them from submerged snags. With thousands of tons of lead sinkers sold in the U.S. annually, accidental sinker loss results in a substantial amount of lead deposition in wetland environments. Here, lead tackle is available to foraging wildlife that mistake it for grain, grit, insects, or fish.

Lead Poisons Loons, Swans, Eagles

Lead poisoning due to fishing tackle has been documented in 25 species of water birds including sensitive species like Common Loons and Trumpeter Swans. In New England, poisoning from lead weights and jigs is the greatest source of loon mortality, accounting for 50% of adult deaths. And at least 17% of adult loon deaths in Minnesota are attributed to lead poisoning from fishing tackle. Lead poisoning, sometimes caused by sinkers, is also a significant mortality factor for the Trumpeter Swan.

Anglers lose lead sinkers, jigs, and weighted flies in fish themselves. Hooked fish can free themselves by breaking a line or pulling tackle loose. Such fish often carry tackle in their mouths or digestive tracts. Fish are not subject to "dietary" lead poisoning and lead tackle typically dissolves. However, predators that take fish containing tackle are susceptible to secondary lead poisoning, e.g., Bald Eagles, Common Loons, Common Mergansers, and Red-breasted Mergansers. It is highly likely that Osprey, which feed exclusively on fish, are regularly exposed to lead as well.

EPA Proposes Ban

In 1994, the EPA proposed a ban on the manufacture, sale, and use of lead fishing tackle because a single lead sinker can cause lethal lead poisoning in wildlife, and in sensitive species even individual mortalities can have population-level effects. The loss of tons of sinkers in the environment every year also creates ample opportunity for water and soil contamination. Finally, the Agency stated that as many as 1,600,000 people make 900 tons of lead sinkers at home for personal use or as part of a "cottage industry," thereby exposing themselves and their families to lead dust. Although symptoms of lead poisoning in humans tend to be subtle, lead exposure can contribute to hypertension, miscarriage, and childhood brain damage.

No actions have been taken on the EPA's proposed ruling, but the National Park Service and the National Wildlife Refuge System have begun to ban the use of lead fishing tackle. Most notably, it is illegal to use lead sinkers in Yellowstone National Park, an important Trumpeter Swan breeding site. Likewise, Canada has prohibited the use of lead tackle in all national parks and national wildlife areas.

Nontoxic Alternatives Available

To meet growing demand, an increasing number of nontoxic alternatives is available. Water Gremlin, the leading sinker maker in the U.S., has established the Gremlin Green line of nontoxic sinkers. BulletWeights produces an array of steel sinkers and jigs. Tungsten, bismuth, and antimony work as well as, or better than, lead for weights and weighted eyes. And Dinsmore's tin split shot sinkers, which can be clamped onto the line and reused, are proving effective (and, for some, easier to handle than lead split shot). Another option is putty (e.g. Loon Outdoors Deep Soft Weight) that is malleable as it is applied to the line, hardening when it is submerged.

The economic impact for anglers of the switch to nontoxic sinkers will be nominal. The average angler spends $1.50-$3.50 annually on sinkers. Nontoxic sinkers could increase that cost by up to $4.00 (the cost of three flies, two spoons, or two spinners), which is still a small fraction of the anglers' equipment costs and an even smaller fraction of total costs. HawkWatch encourages anglers to examine their fishing vests and tackle boxes and to replace all lead tackle with nontoxic alternatives. If you don't fish, please inform fishing family and friends (and local fishing shops) of the dangers of lead tackle and encourage them to purchase and use lead-free tackle.

For more information, check Dr. Wendy Sanborn's complete report, "Lead Poisoning of North American Wildlife From Lead Shot and Lead Fishing Tackle: An Update," here.