It is too expensive with all the EPA regulations to smelt here. In fact, forges are closing just about every day. Most are moving over seas, or to Mexico, but some just go away.
In December, the final primary lead smelter in the United States will close. The lead smelter, located in Herculaneum, Missouri, and owned and operated by the Doe Run Company, has existed in the same location since 1892.
The Herculaneum smelter is currently the only smelter in the United States which can produce lead bullion from raw lead ore that is mined nearby in Missouri's extensive lead deposits, giving the smelter its "primary" designation. The lead bullion produced in Herculaneum is then sold to lead product producers, including ammunition manufactures for use in conventional ammunition components such as projectiles, projectile cores, and primers. Several "secondary" smelters, where lead is recycled from products such as lead acid batteries or spent ammunition components, still operate in the United States.
Doe Run made significant efforts to reduce lead emissions from the smelter, but in 2008 the federal Environmental Protection Agency issued new National Ambient Air Quality Standards for lead that were 10 times tighter than the previous standard. Given the new lead air quality standard, Doe Run made the decision to close the Herculaneum smelter.
Whatever the EPA's motivation when creating the new lead air quality standard, increasingly restrictive regulation of lead is likely to affect the production and cost of traditional ammunition. Just this month, California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law a bill that will ban lead ammunition for all hunting in California. The Center for Biological Diversity has tried multiple times to get similar regulations at the federal level by trying, and repeatedly failing, to get the EPA to regulate conventional ammunition under the Toxic Substances Control Act.
At this time, it's unclear if Doe Run or another company will open a new lead smelter in the United States that can meet the more stringent lead air quality standards by using more modern smelting methods. What is clear is that after the Herculaneum smelter closes its doors in December, entirely domestic manufacture of conventional ammunition, from raw ore to finished cartridge, will be impossible
What is clear is that after the Herculaneum smelter closes its doors in December, entirely domestic manufacture of conventional ammunition, from raw ore to finished cartridge, will be impossible
Anyone with any military sense at all would see the weakness in not having a domestic supply of raw materials for something as essential as ammunition! :shaking:
I realize that the retards running the show dont think that far ahead but damn.
This is why the .gov was buying the HUGE quantities of ammo. Not because of a feared civilian uprising but because TSA (and others) knew that the EPA regs would force closure of Doe Run. That in turn will drive ammo prices up. They were just buying before the rush and price increase is all.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say it's not going to be a big a problem as the NRA is making it out to be. Not that I am happy at all about it closing but I think this might just be one time when the right is hyping it up.
Then again I don't remember the last time I saw .22 lr on the shelf. I'm actually shooting .223, 9mm, & .45 because I can replace it right now. I have a feeling when we do start seeing it again there will be a 10-25% increase on .22 alone.
We asked Sierra Bullets Plant Engineer Darren Leskiw, “How will the closure of the lead smelting plant affect Sierra Bullets?
We have had many customers contact us about the closing of the last primary lead smelting facility in the USA. This facility is operated by Doe Run and is located in Herculaneum, MO and is just about a 3 hour drive from our facility in Sedalia, MO.
The main question asked is “Will this shut down your supply of lead.” The answer to that is no. First, Sierra buys lead from several different vendors to maintain constant supply. Second, this facility only smelts primary lead or lead ore. This is lead ore that has just been brought out of the earth. Sierra uses no primary lead at all and never has, so we use nothing directly from this facility. The lead we buy from Doe Run comes from their recycling facility in Boss, MO that is about 90 miles away from the smelter that is closing.
The facility we buy from is still going strong and delivering to us as scheduled. The lead from this facility is from recycled lead, mostly coming from car batteries. This is a continuing “in and out” cycle for them and the smelter closing will not affect this facility.
Our supply should not be in jeopardy and we do not anticipate any changes in our supply chain at this time. Could the lack of primary lead create a little more demand for recycled lead? Sure, but how much is unknown. Could this increase in demand also create an increase in price? Sure, but again, by how much is unknown at this time.
There are many other primary lead smelters in the world and so the flow of primary lead will not be shut off. Where there is a need for primary lead, I am sure there will be a salesman more than happy to pick up the business.
In short, we do not see any reason for alarm. We expect our supply to continue and keep feeding our production lines which are still running 24 hours per day to return our inventory levels to where they should be.
consumer ammo issues aside, think about what this means from a strategic military standpoint. IFF another world war were to break out, the first thing cut off is supplies. During WWII there was all kinds of rationing. imagine what would happen if we couldn't even refine or produce materials from our own natural resources?
There are millions of tons of raw lead available and in stockpiles and it is easily recycled from wheel weights, printing type, fired bullets, batteries, etc. I would rather the smelter stayed open but I am not that concerned.
Wheel weights are all but gone. Type is all but gone, fired bullets are there if you want to mine a berm, and that's where I get mine. Batteries are pretty toxic to melt, and really should only be done in a production environment.
I think on the one hand it's always sad to see an industry die on US soil. Period. I never like seeing us migrate towards a society lacking in brick and mortar type industries. It makes us weak and dependent. On that same note an education isn't the most important thing a person can get is a trade that satisfies them.
Any how on the other hand maybe it will spur the industries to find the next bullet material. I know that they have already come up lead alternatives for non lead hunting states.
I hope this is a grab our bootstraps and pull ourselves up moment and not a bend over and take it moment.
I know the local guys use lead but I know for a fact that Walmart uses steel weights here in MO. Maybe nationwide? It would make sense since they can't be used in Cali to do the same company wide for someone like Walmart.
I do contract electrical work for Seafab, who runs their mills 24/7 to provide a major battery plant with lead oxide they mill from pigs of pure lead. They also supply the lead/antimony alloy to Nosler. There is no shortage of lead in that supply chain, or they would be in a panic.
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