20 million dead birds

Why does the NRA support poisoning millions of eagles and other wild birds? Tell your senators: Protect wildlife from toxic lead! Oppose the SHARE Act today!

Dear Friends,

On a crisp January day, the residents of Wilton Lake, Maine, saw a majestic bald eagle plummet to the ground. They rushed it to a wildlife rehabilitation center, where the staff pulled a fragment of lead ammunition from the bird's stomach. 

Despite heroic efforts, the eagle died three days later, the small town's third dead eagle in just two weeks. ^[1] This tragedy was no isolated incident -- more than 20 million wild American birds die each year from ingesting toxic lead ammunition. ^[2]

The NRA has fought to keep poisonous lead ammunition on the shelves -- spreading misinformation and attacking Sierra Club supporters, scientists, and even zoos. ^[3] Now the NRA's launching its biggest attack yet, pushing deceptive federal legislation that would make it nearly impossible to stop toxic lead from killing our wildlife. ^[4]

Let's send 75,000 letters to the Senate by Friday: Stand up to the NRA and protect our wildlife from the toxic SHARE act! 

This deadly piece of legislation has already passed the House but together, we can still stop it in the Senate. We've already fought back once before and won. Last fall, SierraRise supporters like you stood up to the NRA -- and California passed the nation's first ban on lead ammunition. ^[5,6]

The extremist SHARE Act would strip the EPA of its ability to keep lead ammunition and fishing tackle out of the environment. ^[7] And it couldn't come at a worst time -- last year, a record number of California condors were treated for lead poisoning. ^[8]

The science on lead is straightforward -- despite what the NRA and ammunition manufacturers want us to believe.

Lead is a deadly neurotoxin and we've eliminated it from our gasoline, paint, and toys. But right now, over 3,000 tons of lead from bullets is being shot into the wild every year -- while another 4,000 tons from fishing tackle are lost in ponds and streams. ^[9] Birds of prey often ingest these lead fragments -- either when they are left behind on the ground or when feeding on other animals that were killed with lead bullets.

Despite the propaganda, there are plenty of effective alternatives to lead ammunition. Hunters in Arizona have embraced safer copper ammunition -- even the U.S. military is making the switch. ^[10,11]

Enough is enough -- it is time to get the lead out! 

Tell your senator: Stand up to the NRA and oppose the SHARE Act to protect our wildlife from toxic lead ammunition! 

In it together, 

Ashley Allison
SierraRise Senior Campaigner

P.S. Five signatures are even more powerful than one -- after you take action, be sure to forward this alert to your friends, family, and colleagues!