Environmental Pigeons

Shotgun ranges on public lands have recently been closed on environmental grounds because of the presence of "semi-volatile organic compounds from broken clay pigeons."

There's no question that the shotgun sports are getting beat up a bit because of lead shot and current clay pigeon formulations.

The shot issue will resolve itself. We are beginning to see non-toxic target loads entering the marketplace.

Fourteen years ago, White Flyer introduced its first biodegradable clay pigeon. Unfortunately, it just didn't perform like existing clays and was withdrawn from the market.

In 1999, White Flyer has developed and patented a 100 percent non-toxic, biodegradable formulation that satisfies stringent performance standards and will be phased in across the total skeet, trap and sporting clays lines this year.

The new clay pigeons are made entirely from naturally occurring materials, and even the paint formulations have been modified to be non-toxic and water-soluble.

The degrading process begins in the presence of moisture. The water soluble paint dissolves leaving behind a greenish-brown colored clay that blends well with the earth -- no more luminescent dots out there on the range. Moisture then attacks. The clay itself degrades totally in one to two years.

White Flyer's biodegradable skeet and trap clays are available immediately while the sporting clays line will be available later in the year. With leadership like this, shotgun sports will be alive and well in the 21st century.

COPYRIGHT 1999 Publishers' Development Corporation
COPYRIGHT 2000 Gale Group