Why choose lead-free hunting ammunition?
Lead ammunition loses weight as small pieces strip from the front of the bullet or shot as it passes through an animal. These fragments are found farther from the wound channel than you may expect, and many are too small to see with the naked eye, making them difficult to remove.
Lead fragments may be left in the remains after harvesting an animal, even after field dressing. Remains from field-dressed animals provide a food source for scavenging wildlife.
How can you help?
Protect wildlife by choosing lead-free ammunition this hunting season. We encourage hunters to choose lead-free ammunition for all hunting, including big game.
Try Lead-Free Ammunition this Hunting Season
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service offers a lead-free hunting ammunition incentive program for hunters at select national wildlife refuges.
The program is a collaborative public and private partnership effort, guided by the Hunting and Wildlife Conservation Council federal advisory group, to educate and empower hunters in their choice of hunting ammunition.
Through the incentive program, hunters at participating sites can try lead-free hunting ammunition for free by submitting receipts to receive a prepaid debit card for up to $50 per box of lead-free hunting ammunition ($25/box for shotgun or muzzleloader and $50/box for rifle). Limit 2 boxes of ammunition per eligible hunter. The incentives will be provided on a first come, first serve basis until the available funds at each refuge are exhausted.
Lead-free incentive program hunting locations:
- William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon�(for antlerless elk with refuge hunting permit)
- Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge in Wisconsin�(for whitetail deer with refuge hunting permit)
- Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge Pungo Unit in North Carolina (for hunting whitetail deer, refuge hunting fee required)
- Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge in New Jersey� (for all authorized species with refuge hunting permit)
- Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Maryland (for deer and turkey with refuge hunting permit)
- Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge in West Virginia (for all authorized species)
- Camas National Wildlife Refuge, Idaho � elk hunting
- Cape May National Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey � deer hunting
- Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge, Maryland � deer and spring turkey hunting
- Great Bay National Wildlife Refuge, New Hampshire � deer and spring turkey hunting
- Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge, New York � deer hunting
- Nulhegan Division of Silvio O. Conte National Wildlife Refuge, Vermont � moose and deer hunting
- Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, Massachusetts � deer hunting
Submit your proof of purchase (updated form coming soon)
Read more:
All Initiatives related to Lead-free
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