Hazardous Lead Levels at Sacramento Gun Range has Residents Concerned

In late April, CBS13 broadcasted a report about hazardous levels of lead that caused the temporary closure of an indoor gun range owned by the city of Sacramento. The shooting range was first closed in 2014 when exceptionally high levels of lead were discovered at the indoor facility.

A fence has been constructed around the building that is located next to a park and nearby neighborhoods. According to the news report, aside from the indoor issues, lead has been found on the building’s roof and close to the building’s exterior. This information has many area residents concerned that lead dust may have drifted into the surrounding park and their neighborhoods.

Nationwide, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) states that there are an estimated 9,000 non-military outdoor firing ranges and approximately 16,000 to 18,000 indoor ranges operating in the United States. The U.S. military alone operates more than 3,000 indoor firing ranges. Millions of pounds of lead from bullets are shot at these ranges, and both outdoor and indoor firing ranges can be contaminated with high levels of lead and lead dusts. At any type of range, cleaning and maintenance work should be performed regularly by employees who are trained in the proper techniques of exposure control and personal protective equipment (PPE). 

“In 2013, Assembly Bill 711 was approved in California which requires a complete ban on the use of lead ammunition for any hunting purposes anywhere in the state by July 1, 2019,” said Michael Chapman, Laboratory Manager at LA Testing’s Garden Grove facility. “However, this new law does not impact the use of lead bullets at California’s shooting ranges, so lead exposure risks at these facilities will likely continue.”

Government agencies, companies and people concerned about the possible presence of lead due to shooting ranges or other reasons can turn to the lead experts at LA Testing. LA Testing offers comprehensive lead analyses of both indoor and outdoor environmental samples and provides all of the sampling supplies necessary to submit samples. LA Testing has also sponsored an educational video about lead exposure risks at shooting ranges that can be viewed at: http://youtu.be/OmjzmbbPxk0.

To learn more about lead testing services or other environmental, occupational and indoor air quality (IAQ) issues, please visit www.LATesting.com, email  info@LATesting.com  or call (800) 755-1794. 

About LA Testing

LA Testing is California’s leading laboratory for air quality testing of asbestos, mold, lead, VOCs, formaldehyde, soot, char, ash and smoke damage, particulates and other chemicals. In addition, LA Testing offers a full range of air sampling and investigative equipment to professionals and the general public. LA Testing maintains an extensive list of accreditations including: AIHA LAP LLC., AIHA ELLAP, AIHA EMLAP and AIHA IHLAP, NVLAP, CDC ELITE, State of California, State of Hawaii Department of Health and other states. LA Testing, along with the EMSL Analytical, Inc. network, has multiple lab.

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