Use of lead bullets may cost Florida gun club its lease

ENGLEWOOD, Fla. -- For more than 30 years, members of a local gun club have shot lead bullets into a mound behind their shooting range, located on top of a water district well field.

Officials say the Englewood Pistoleers Gun Club may have violated a law that prohibits the use of toxic materials, including lead, on well fields that supply drinking water to the public.

The law was passed in 1992, just months after the gun club signed its last lease. The lease expired in March.

"It would appear that the use and handling of lead bullets in the well field is a prohibited activity under the ordinance," Tom McLennon, attorney for the Englewood Water District's Board of Supervisors, said in a letter delivered to the club Friday.

Water district officials are concerned that lead could have leached into the ground water supply. But water from the wells is diluted with the entire water supply, making it safe to drink, district officials said.

Recent tests showed one well behind the range had twice the amount of lead allowed in drinking water by the Environmental Protection Agency. Another well had an acceptable level.

While they continue to search for solutions, some club leaders said they have become skeptical that the lease will be renewed. The club has had trouble convincing the board that its activity doesn't threaten public health.