Are the pillars of the EU’s lead ammunition ban starting to crumble?

The “opinion-making” process within the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) on the proposal for a near-total ban on the use of lead in ammunition for hunting and sports shooting has stumbled yet again.

After the maladministration case highlighted by the European Ombudsman’s assessment linked to data transparency in ECHA’s human health risk assessment, the environment pillar has now taken a blow: a new scientific study casts doubt on the methodology and conclusions of the ECHA report. This is another unfortunate turn of events for the EU’s proposed lead ammunition ban, which will affect millions of European citizens.

The new peer-reviewed study demonstrates how ECHA’s estimates of European terrestrial bird declines from lead ammunition ingestion are based on uncertain or generic assumptions. This study concludes lower, more realistic estimates of bird declines, based on a more reliable methodology.

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