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New US Interior Secretary Lifts Lead Ammunition Ban in Nod to Hunters


Vice President Mike Pence applauds as newly sworn in Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke addresses the crowd, March 1, 2017, in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington.
Vice President Mike Pence applauds as newly sworn in Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke addresses the crowd, March 1, 2017, in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington.

New U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Thursday issued an order overturning an Obama administration ban on the controversial use of lead ammunition and fishing tackle used on federal lands and waters, in a nod to hunters and fishermen on his first day on the job.

Zinke, who was a first-term Montana Congressman and a former Navy SEAL, arrived for his first day at work at the Interior Department in Washington on a horse named Tonto escorted by mounted U.S. Park Police officers.

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke arriving for his first day of work at the Interior Department in Washington, March 2, 2017, aboard 17-year-old Tonto.
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke arriving for his first day of work at the Interior Department in Washington, March 2, 2017, aboard 17-year-old Tonto.

Zinke, an avid angler and hunter, lifted the lead ammunition ban in one of two secretarial orders, which he said were meant to “expand access to public lands and increase hunting, fishing, and recreation opportunities nationwide.”

Interior Department employs over 70,000

President Barack Obama's Fish and Wildlife Service had issued the lead ban on Jan. 19, one day before the inauguration of President Donald Trump, to protect birds and fish from lead poisoning. The move was met with sharp criticism from the National Rifle Association (NRA), which called it Obama's “final assault on gun owners' and sportsmen's rights.”

The Interior Department, which is in charge of conserving fish, wildlife and their habitat, manages one-fifth of the land in the United States. It employs more than 70,000 people across the United States.

Secretarial orders signed

Zinke also signed an order on Thursday that would direct federal agencies to identify areas where recreation and fishing can be expanded and sought recommendations for expanding access to public lands and improving fishing and wildlife habitat.

“This package of secretarial orders will expand access for outdoor enthusiasts and also make sure the community's voice is heard,” he said.

The NRA, as well as hunting and fishing groups including the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation, National Shooting Sports Foundation, Ducks Unlimited and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership attended the signing of the orders.

Zinke said that fishing, hunting, and other outdoor recreation activities “generate thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in economic activity.”

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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