Toxicity evaluation of trap and skeet shooting targets to aquatic test species

Abstract

: Large quantities of trap and skeet clay targets are used in shooting activities around the United States. For example, the number of targets used since 1970 has averaged approximately 560 million a year. A number of acute and chronic tests were performed to determine the toxicity of Remington Arms Company Blue Rock(®) trap and skeet target fragments upon selected freshwater and marine organisms. These studies were undertaken in support of an environmental impact study of trap and skeet shooting activities at a major gun club in the northeast United States. Targets were composed of approximately 67% dolomitic limestone, 32% petroleum pitch and 1% fluorescent aqueous paint (painted targets only). The majority of samples were painted, new targets obtained from the manufacturer and painted and aged targets collected around a shooting range. Additional tests were conducted using non-painted, new targets and leachates prepared from both painted, new and aged targets. Targets were crushed to small fragments and were either directly added to the test vessels at extremely high concentrations ranging from 670 to 600 000 mgl(-1) or used in leachate tests. In direct tests all target materials were essentially non-toxic to marine and freshwater organisms, except for the non-painted new targets which exhibited minimal acute toxicity to Daphnia magna (48 h EC 50=2200 mgl(-1)). In leachate tests, the leachate was not-toxic to mysid shrimp, the only organism tested. Additional samples of crushed targets were analysed for the presence of selected priority pollutants (EP toxicity test) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The targets did not exhibit the characteristics of toxicity as determined by the EP toxicity test but did contain substantial amounts of PAHs. However, results from new and aged targets suggest that PAH are tightly bound in the petroleum pitch and limestone matrix and are unlikely to be readily available in the environment. The potential impact of targets on the environment is further discussed.

The relative importance of selected physical fitness parameters in Olympic clay target shooting

“…The initial comprehensive literature review focused on clay target shooting revealed that there was a large volume of studies irrelevant to our purpose. For example, examining the environmental influence of lead pollution and the impact of the clay targets on the ecology at a shooting range (Baer et al, 1995;McTee et al, 2016;Migliorini et al, 2004;Rooney and McLaren, 2000;Sorvari et al, 2006;Vyas et al, 2000). Indeed, our review has indicated only one study by Puglisi et al (2014), focusing on the relationship between good balance and better performance in the skeet shooting discipline.…”

Biological assessment of contaminated shooting range soil using earthworm biomarkers

“…Contamination of shooting range soils poses a risk of trace element accumulation to higher trophic levels. Considering high contamination in the shooting range soils, these sites' ecotoxicological risks of these sites become an important eld of study (Baer et al 1995 ). Contamination of hazardous trace elements results in a reduced of survival and reproduction rate of earthworms (Luo et al 2014a;Sanderson et al 2014), mites (Luo et al 2015), and negatively affects all soil faunal communities (Selonen et al 2014).…”

Biological assessment of contaminated shooting range soil using earthworm biomarkers

“…Contamination of shooting range soils poses a risk of trace element accumulation to higher trophic levels. Considering high contamination in the shooting range soils, these sites' ecotoxicological risks of these sites become an important eld of study (Baer et al 1995;Reid and Watson 2005;Sneddon et al 2009;Sanderson et al 2018; Sujetovienė and Česynaitė 2019; Dinake et al 2019). Contamination of hazardous trace elements results in a reduced of survival and reproduction rate of earthworms (Luo et al 2014a;Sanderson et al 2014), mites (Luo et al 2015), and negatively affects all soil faunal communities (Selonen et al 2014).…”