Unleaded ammunition

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Military M855A1 5.56 × 45mm NATO ammunition with copper bullet and steel tip

Lead-free ammunition is used for reasons of environmental and health protection . Conventional cartridge ammunition contains lead in both the projectiles and the percussion caps . Generally speaking, the term “green” ammunition is low in pollutants. Because other dangerous substances such as barium or antimony can also be found in conventional cartridges.

The regulations on the use of lead-containing and lead-free ammunition are inconsistent within the European Union.

Problems with lead ammunition

right: cartridge caliber .40 S&W with hollow point bullet, left: bullet of the same caliber with an exposed lead core that has mushroomed after impact with the target

Endangering the shooter

The primer cap contains lead in the initial explosive lead trinitroresorcinate . When the shot is fired , the combustion residues are released into the environment. Additional stress comes from the abrasion of the lead bullets in the barrel . Most jacketed floors are also not completely encased, but have an exposed point at the stern. Hot powder gases release lead particles from the rear of the projectile when it is launched. It can happen that the air at shooting ranges contains concentrations of lead particles that are harmful to health. The type of bullet trap can also affect air quality. While soft bullet traps absorb the bullet, hard bullet traps such as chain bullet traps cause the bullets to splinter, which can lead to increased metal dust concentrations in the room air.

Particularly at risk are people such as shooting instructors and intensive training special units on shooting ranges with insufficient ventilation .

Groundwater hazard

The bullet trap as well as in the disk prior to the shooting ranges high lead concentrations arise from the lead in the floors on a gram per kilogram range, which, however, are limited to the relatively small space. In contrast to the shooting ranges, however, it is the case with the extensive facilities for clay target shooting , where the lead shot is distributed over a large area.

Example USA

The United States Armed Forces had to close many shooting ranges because lead had entered the groundwater . The cost of disposing of this environmental damage were in 2009 to 9 billion US dollars estimated.

Example Switzerland

In Switzerland, the floors at shooting ranges contain around 30,000–40,000 tons of lead. Around 2,500 civilian shooting ranges will have to be renovated by 2020. Together with the armed forces shooting ranges, the renovation costs are estimated at 1 billion Swiss francs . From 2021 onwards, shooting into the ground will no longer be allowed in Switzerland. This means that an earth wall may no longer be used as a bullet trap.

Endangerment of wild animals

A great deal of attention to the problem is evident when hunting . In particular, large scavenging birds such as white-tailed eagles , giant sea eagles and California condors are threatened by lead poisoning worldwide . According to an estimate by ECHA , around one to two million land birds die each year in the EU from lead poisoning. The main source is the break-up of animals which were shot with lead bullets. Because of this, hunting with lead bullets was banned in various German states , California or Hokkaidō . Hunters can bury the start, but this is not always useful, e.g. B. on frozen ground. Even if the breakout is buried, it can e.g. B. Dig up wild boars again.

In contrast to the scavengers, who ingest the lead with the carrion, many waterfowl consider the pellets of the meal themselves to be food. For this reason, too, hunting with lead ammunition in water is prohibited in some areas .

Danger to humans from eating game

With an average consumption of game meat, there is no warning of a hazard. Only high consumers, e.g. B. in hunter households, or as part of a risk group (pregnancy and toddler) if game hunted with lead bullets is frequently consumed, are subject to a possible hazard.

Alternatives

Full copper bullets for hunting.

The ammunition industry developed lead-free primers, lead-core jacketed projectiles with a covered base, and lead-free projectiles and shot. These include full bullets made of copper or copper alloys, or jacketed bullets with a core made of tungsten / nylon . Mixtures of tin or zinc with massive metals are pressed into metal matrix composite material in the form of bullets using powder metallurgy processes . Soft iron , zinc, bismuth and tungsten are available as alternatives for shot . Only tungsten alloys have the same performance parameters as lead, but they are much harder.

The various alternatives for lead are not without controversy. The United States Army introduced tungsten-containing training bullets in the 1990s because this material was considered less toxic. This view was later challenged by various studies and the US Army terminated the procurement. The copper is also not harmless.

The disadvantage is that lead-free bullets are more expensive. In addition, there are divergent views and experiences repulsion , and waidgerechter killing effect. In a study in 2014, the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture found that the rebound behavior is not significantly increased and that there are no significant differences in the humane killing effect.

TV reports

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c Karl Sellier, Beat P. Kneubuehl : Wound ballistics: and their ballistic basics , Springer-Verlag , 2013, ISBN 9783662109809 , pp. 82-83 ( limited preview in the Google book search).
  2. ↑ Gerhard Hegmann: G36 gets 25 million rounds of eco-ammunition , WeltN24 , March 5, 2017.
  3. ↑ a b c d Katja Bauer: Toxins on the shooting ranges of elite police? , Badische Zeitung , June 4, 2016.
  4. ↑ Thomas Krumenacker: Nature conservation: Will lead-containing hunting ammunition finally be banned? In: spectrum. June 22, 2020, accessed June 25, 2020 .
  5. ↑ Gerhard Ott, Ulrich Wurster: Exposure to hazardous substances in the air of an indoor shooting range with a new type of chain bullet trap. In: Hazardous substances - cleanliness. Air . 63, No. 1/2, 2003, ISSN  0949-8036 , pp. 35-40.
  6. ↑ Lepke T., Dillon S., Wermeille C. 2016: VASA compensation for shooting ranges. Notification from the FOEN as the enforcement authority. 2nd updated edition, December 2016. Federal Office for the Environment, Bern. Environmental Implementation No. 0634, Chapter 1.
  7. ↑ Jürgen Schönstein: American Army should shoot lead-free , WeltN24 , February 25, 1999.
  8. ^ Daniel Bütler: Wilhelm Tells toxic legacy , observer , September 1, 2015.
  9. ↑ Lepke T., Dillon S., Wermeille C. 2016: VASA compensation for shooting ranges. Notification from the FOEN as the enforcement authority. 2nd updated edition, December 2016. Federal Office for the Environment, Bern. Environmental Implementation No. 0634, p. 8.
  10. ↑ Mirjam Nadjafzadeh: Feeding Ecology of and Lead Exposure in a Top Predator: The White-tailed Eagle Logos Verlag, 2011, ISBN 9783832529895 , pp. 34–35 ( limited preview in Google book search).
  11. ↑ ECHA: ANNEX XV INVESTIGATION REPORT - A review of the available information on lead in shot used in terrestrial environments, in ammunition and in fishing tackle , August 2018, p. 29.
  12. ↑ a b Frank Pergande : Sea eagle with lead poisoning , Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , April 16, 2009.
  13. ^ Daniel Lingenhöhl: Lead ammunition poisoned numerous birds , in: Spectrum of Science , November 27, 2015.
  14. ↑ a b Health risk from lead in game , Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture , August 15, 2016.
  15. ↑ Vincent JM DiMaio: Gunshot Wounds , Edition 3, CRC Press , 2015, ISBN 9781498725705 , p. 24 ( limited preview in Google Book Search).
  16. ↑ Ingo Rottenberger: DEVA test: lead-free shot ammunition , August 26, 2015, game and dog .
  17. ↑ David Hambling, 'Green' Training Ammo Carries Cancer Risk , April 20, 2009, Wired .
  18. ^ Tungsten may not be the best shot for making 'green' bullet , June 1, 2011, American Chemical Society .
  19. ^ Julian Fäth, Axel Göttlein: Ecotoxicity of hunting rifle bullets , 22/2015, In: AFZ / DerWald .
  20. ↑ Christian Gruber: Contaminated game meat: lead in the stomach , Spiegel Online , December 24, 2012.