MA banning lead in 2012 2024

Saladmander reply :

I went to the sportsman circus today at the Big E and spoke with a guy from the wildlife and fisheries department about the ban on lead for 2012. I don't know if this has been discussed here at all, but what do you guys think about this? The bullet, drop shot, split shot... that's not a huge deal, but replacing all those jigs... that's killin' me just thinking about it. I asked him about spinnerbaits and he said he didn't think those were on the list. But, he also said that was because the wire wouldn't rust because it was aluminum. That kinda blew up his credibility. What have you guys heard?

GrundleLove reply :

Yup lead is being banned. There was a few guys talking about it at the BPS Spring event on Saturday (which was awesome). There are actually a few new england states that ban lead if im not mistaken? perhaps?

But honestly. It literally will not stop me from fishing with lead. Call me ignorant, but if a trillion bazillion gallons of oil can spill and KVD can still destroy bass in an area said to have been effected? I cant imagine my swim jig causing a LMB holocaust

but i know that you cant use them in tourneys in MA in 2012. Its all tungsten. which is WAY more expensive then lead. Also, they said that a BPS guy said they can still SELL lead stuff...but you cant "use it" in MA which makes no sense and just sounds like the "save the planet " yahoo's needed to get their grubby little hands on SOMETHING to make it seem like they accomplished something. I have the utmost respect for fish, the ponds and lakes, the wildlife environment in which i am fishin or hiking or biking, but to me...this seems ALL to political and completely unnecessary.

Jigfishn10 reply :

The lead ban for 2012 will be for jigs 1oz and less and sinkers. I'm glad you asked about spinnerbaits it sort of fits into the CMR definition of a jig:

Lead Jig means any lead-weighted hook which has a mass of less than one ounce.

NH & ME have similar lead bans which, I believe, do not include jigs. NH inplemented the use of lead back in and around 2000 and ME followed a few years after that. I'm sure some of BR's NH & ME members could clarify that last statement.

GTrombly reply :

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But honestly. It literally will not stop me from fishing with lead. Call me ignorant, but if a trillion bazillion gallons of oil can spill and KVD can still destroy bass in an area said to have been effected? I cant imagine my swim jig causing a LMB holocaust

They are doing it mostly for the water fowl and loons. They eat the lead and die. Tungsten is getting cheaper and with more companies producing it it should hopefully keep dropping in price.

GrundleLove reply :

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But honestly. It literally will not stop me from fishing with lead. Call me ignorant, but if a trillion bazillion gallons of oil can spill and KVD can still destroy bass in an area said to have been effected? I cant imagine my swim jig causing a LMB holocaust

They are doing it mostly for the water fowl and loons. They eat the lead and die. Tungsten is getting cheaper and with more companies producing it it should hopefully keep dropping in price.

but my question is...is it enough to ACTUALLY effect the population? are there mass groupings of loons dieing because of peoples jig heads? seriously?

Jigfishn10 reply :

Grundle, your questions are good questions that have been debated too many times over. MA is borderline or at least at the outer reaches for loon migration, but the argument is for other waterfowl as well. This issue isn't just a regional issue, last year it was on a nation level, we just so happen to be one of the few states that have implemented the ban. CT wanted to propose a lead ban this year and has since been retracted, for this season anyway. Time will tell, but my guess is that all 50 states will be implementing some sort of ban in the not to distant future.

1 prediction I will make that will be debated in the next few years and that will be for soft plastic baits. There have been studies made on fish kills due to soft plastics. You watch.

ROCbass reply :

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But honestly. It literally will not stop me from fishing with lead. Call me ignorant, but if a trillion bazillion gallons of oil can spill and KVD can still destroy bass in an area said to have been effected? I cant imagine my swim jig causing a LMB holocaust

They are doing it mostly for the water fowl and loons. They eat the lead and die. Tungsten is getting cheaper and with more companies producing it it should hopefully keep dropping in price.

but my question is...is it enough to ACTUALLY effect the population? are there mass groupings of loons dieing because of peoples jig heads? seriously?

It's doubtful. When NY banned the sale of lead weights, the reasoning behind it was that birds were swallowing sinkers thinking they were pebbles and getting lead poisoning. Jigs weren't included in the ban. I'm not sure why they chose not to include jigs, but one could reasonably assume that if a bird swallowed a jig the hook would kill them before lead poisoning could.

J Francho reply :

This is how it goes down. The professor will come to a public hearing, and present a lop sided dataset, and show a bunch of dead loons. He'll be backed by the Audubon Society, and possibly other "environmental" groups. Everyone is so sad for the loons, common sense takes a long nap. Laws are passed.

http://www.tufts.edu/vet/loons/index.html

The question to ask is, "How many loons die per year in places where you've been able to ban lead?" Not, "How many loons died from lead poisoning?" The answer will be, the same as before the ban.

xjma99 reply :

Not news to me and I'm fine with it, I've been using tungsten for a few years and love it. I am much more cautious when I get snagged that I don't lose my ~1 dollar tungsten bullet weight though!!

I know in NH the rule for jigs is if it's over 1" long, it's all good. I haven't seen the exact language for MA though so I have no idea if it will be the same.

Saladmander reply :

I'm not entirely against the movement. I mean, whatever the data suggests or however it is presented, it's a known fact that lead exposure isn't good for wildlife or humans. Ban it, or don't ban it... bottom line is people will continue to use it because it is still more readily accessible and cheaper than any other material for it's intended use. And, it's a good chance these will, in large part, be the same people that ruined it for those of use who do try and act responsibly when they let us out of the house. You know the ones that I'm talking about... can't clean up after themselves when they go fishing and leave trash and nightcrawler containers everywhere they fish... feel that it's cool to leave a 100 yards of line in a snarled mess right by the boat ramp... pretty much anything they don't want anymore stays right where they fished last. When, you consider all the advancements in the fishing industry, especially in recent history, it's a bit surprising that lead is still the primary material for weighted tackle and that an alternative has not already become the norm. Then it would be easier to justify the banning of lead.

As mentioned, I hope this movement does help the industry find better ways to do weighted tackle that is more affordable. I'm a big fan of tungsten weights, and also a big fan of not losing them. I do, however, strongly believe that the fishing industry is still playing off it's superior characteristics with respect to lead to help keep the high price tags. But, right now, tungsten jigs could be considered a luxury item... steel, bismuth, or alloy jigs... do they even have those?

I just think it's too early. That's all.

nboucher reply :

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He'll be backed by the Audubon Society, and possibly other "environmental" groups. Everyone is so sad for the loons, common sense takes a long nap. Laws are passed.

Well, I've been fishing since I was big enough to hold a rod, and I'm also an Audubon society member and, yes, even a tree hugger. These do not have to be contradictory; they all reflect a passion for the outdoors and a love of fish, birds, trees, and all of nature. Get anglers and tree huggers fighting, and the developers win. Then everybody who loves the outdoors loses.

llPa1nll reply :

Im going to add my 2 cents and say that Im from NH and dont have a problem with the NH lead ban at all. Its fair and reasonable, lead is a pretty harmful substance. I think everyone can agree on that.

Jigfishn10 reply :

I wouldn't have a problem with banning only lead sinkers as ME & NH do, but to ban jigs with an open ended definition is completely another thing.

The MA CMR definition of a lead jig can be interpreted to mean that you can't use spinnerbaits and buzzbaits as well.

Then again, last year they wanted to ban ALL lead, at least this year they whittled it down a bit. Who knows what really will be implemented.

Crestliner2008 reply :

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Im going to add my 2 cents and say that Im from NH and dont have a problem with the NH lead ban at all. Its fair and reasonable, lead is a pretty harmful substance. I think everyone can agree on that.

I agree that it's a harmful substance. But what do you think tungsten is?

J Francho reply :

Tungsten Carbide is pretty harmless.

Jigfishn10 reply :

My house was built in the 1950's. the brand new house I was born in was built in the 1960's. All the plumbing joints was copper that was soldered with a lead alloy solder. Before then, all plumbing joints were soldered with a lead alloy solder. It was only until the mid-80's that they found some cases attributed to kids with neurological problems with lead based paints. That was attributed to kids biting on things like window sills.

They continued to solder plumbing joints with lead based solder. Last weekend I had to so a repair to my home and went to my local hardware store for solder and they still sell a 80-20% lead based solder.

The paint in use today is NOT lead based paint which caused the uproar back 20 years ago, but yet we can make plumbing repairs to our home with lead based products?

So now where back to fishing and the wildlife. Yes they found that lead sinkers have an adverse affect on water fowl and we are trying to go from lead sinkers to alternative sources, but is ALL lead products that bad? I think we need to analyze this a bit more.

Just MHO.

J Francho reply :

I ate paint chips as a kid, and I'm fine.

Crestliner2008 reply :

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I ate paint chips as a kid, and I'm fine.

So....THAT'S your problem! ;D ;D ;D

J Francho reply :

LOL, you drank the tapwater!!!!

Jigfishn10 reply :

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I ate paint chips as a kid, and I'm fine.

I was thinking the opposite, you fared better than I did...LOL

J Francho reply :

Water Gremlin's new ad campaign:

"Lead, at least its not asbestos."

grampa1114 reply :

Correct me if I'm wrong...and I'm sure you will...Vermont's rule is for lead worm weights...all attached to the line...and not lead attached to hooks. I believe they assume that birds are smart enough not to swallow hooks...Anyone...Anyone...

grampa1114 reply :

By the way...lead paint chips were yummy

Scorcher214 reply :

I guess if i had too, i would make the switch to tungsten. The only problem is that i don't see too many spinnerbaits/jigs made with tungsten.

GrundleLove reply :

Even with the ban. I will never stop using lead.

Come arrest me DCR.

jig reply :

Jigfishn10 reply :

LMAO...Grundle, Jig...Goodluck.

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MA banning lead in 2012 2024

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