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Massachusetts Passes Legislation to Limit Lead in Fishing

On January 1, 2012, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts enacted legislation limiting lead use in recreational fishing. Mike Browne and his Get the Lead Out of Fishing project is proud to be part of reason that birds and waterfowl in Massachusetts can now be safer from this hidden danger.

fishing off a dockIn 2009, Mike was invited to testify at the Massachusetts Wildlife Department of Fish and Wildlife board meeting. He provided valuable insight from his many fishing derbies – first hand knowledge from going out and talking to anglers. He also testified about his experiences at both the EPA and at many environmental events he had attended both in the United States and in Sweden.

The board decided to ban lead (read the announcement on the MassWildlife website) and gave anglers and retailers until January 1, 2012 to transition to non-lead fishing tackle.

Mike is proud that his efforts played a part in helping the board decide to ban lead.

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New York Times Features Mike Browne

Mike Browne was featured in a special education section of the paper on young people making a difference.  “Five Do-Gooders” interviewed teens from all over the country who found a problem and made a real difference in trying to solve it.

The article highlights the origins and success of Browne’s project and talks about his Aspergers.  Mike is happy that the “Get the Lead Out of Fishing” message is reaching an entirely new audience of educators and parents.  He hope that educators will be inspired to teach their classes about the hidden dangers of lead and that parents will teach their children and buy lead-free fishing weights.

Update: Browne has created a lesson plan for use in the classroom to teach students about the hidden dangers of lead. View and download the lesson plan.