California sneaky lead ban

[bassfanatick]

There is a new drive or something to restrict the sales of lead sinker in California, as of now I am certain there is no law against the sale of lead in this state, but leave it up to the dirty politicians and environmental groups to sneakily create something like this. I hope they get sued and brought to court. This is from Tacklewarehouse, an online tackle store based in California:

 

[MisterT]

I really hope that isn't the case.

 

[TheFrood]

Meh. I'll just use something else for a sinker when my current ones are gone and not able to be replaced. Spark-plugs, nuts or bolts, oddly shaped rocks, little bags of sand... For me this is a non-issue and not worth getting upset about. There are plenty of objects that are heavy enough to sink in water and I'm not obsessed with being so efficient that I need to be an Olympian of anglers and not invested in lead sinkers enough to oppose banning them.

 

[Ken Jones]

The state and federal government have talked about bans on lead sinkers for years and some states have, I believe, already enacted bans on some sinkers. To be honest I don't know the status of current legislation but have assumed for some time that it's only a matter of time.

 

[moonshine]

I've purchased lead less frequently as of late.
I know it's not a perfect alternative but I have bought some tungsten to fish up here. I've found it has a hardness when I fish it dropshotted. I can feel it contact a rocky bottom that telegraphs to the rod tip.

 

[SC McCarty]

Lead has advantages: it has a higher density than most commonly available materials, which makes it sink quickly, and its low melting point makes it available for casting your own sinkers.

It is however, toxic. This is a potential problem from fumes when casting sinkers. We also leave a lot of sinkers in the water when our lines get snagged. Once they are buried, they are probably pretty inert, but while near the surface of the sand, they are subject to abrasion, which would put fine particles of lead into the environment.

I use lead sinkers, as I have since I was a kid, but I would like to find a safer alternative. If this law would lead to that, I would be happy.

Steve