Gold Supporter
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I just received an email from a forester in Tillamook State Forest (we are working on the idea of placing dumpsters in the forest). What he wrote is very disturbing. Our problem is growing. Bigger than the simple everyday milk jugs, paper targets, propane bottles and TV trash we typically see. The problem is the kind of shooters who are doing this.
"...Ultimately, I would really like to figure out a way to motivate target shooters to use legal responsible targets and to pack out their own trash and targets. It is very disheartening to drive by all the places where people shoot and see all of the target shooting trash left. It is becoming more and more visible as the use continues to increase and spread out. It is difficult to understand why people think it is OK to bring garbage out to the forest to shoot and then to just leave it after their done shooting at it. In the last three weeks, from just a handful of target shooting locations, I have hauled out a full size refrigerator, 6 tires, several computers, 5 gallon buckets, paint cans, fuel and propane tanks and canisters, several pallets and chunks of plywood, quartz countertop material, carpet, several pots and pans, hubcaps, car battery, stuffed animals, parts of a sink, and the standard bottles, cardboard, cans, and paper targets. This week I found a utility trailer that was hauled into one of the Salmonberry Road shooting sites and used as a target. We need to figure out a way to dispose of it."
This happened within the recent 3 weeks in just one forest and within a fairly close proximity of that part of the forest. It's getting out of hand. These kind of people are ruining our privilege to shoot on public land!
This reflects real bad on all 'gun owners'. It pisses me off to think that these few irresponsible low-life jerks are destroying the value of our 2nd Amendment and the heritage, we value so dearly, of free public land recreational shooting.
It doesn't matter if you shoot at a private range, public range or public land. It's the fact that some people are actually destroying the integrity of people who own guns. It hurts us all. We all need to step up to the challenge and find solutions to this problem.
Our dumpster in the woods is one idea. The rules/ethics brochure is another one. The improved shooting lanes is another. So is the promotions of being a good steward. Still, this crap goes on.
We gotta put a stop to this crap before we loose it all! It's going to take a lot of people, a lot of ideas and a lot of boots on the ground to make a difference.
Bill
"...Ultimately, I would really like to figure out a way to motivate target shooters to use legal responsible targets and to pack out their own trash and targets. It is very disheartening to drive by all the places where people shoot and see all of the target shooting trash left. It is becoming more and more visible as the use continues to increase and spread out. It is difficult to understand why people think it is OK to bring garbage out to the forest to shoot and then to just leave it after their done shooting at it. In the last three weeks, from just a handful of target shooting locations, I have hauled out a full size refrigerator, 6 tires, several computers, 5 gallon buckets, paint cans, fuel and propane tanks and canisters, several pallets and chunks of plywood, quartz countertop material, carpet, several pots and pans, hubcaps, car battery, stuffed animals, parts of a sink, and the standard bottles, cardboard, cans, and paper targets. This week I found a utility trailer that was hauled into one of the Salmonberry Road shooting sites and used as a target. We need to figure out a way to dispose of it."
This happened within the recent 3 weeks in just one forest and within a fairly close proximity of that part of the forest. It's getting out of hand. These kind of people are ruining our privilege to shoot on public land!
This reflects real bad on all 'gun owners'. It pisses me off to think that these few irresponsible low-life jerks are destroying the value of our 2nd Amendment and the heritage, we value so dearly, of free public land recreational shooting.
It doesn't matter if you shoot at a private range, public range or public land. It's the fact that some people are actually destroying the integrity of people who own guns. It hurts us all. We all need to step up to the challenge and find solutions to this problem.
Our dumpster in the woods is one idea. The rules/ethics brochure is another one. The improved shooting lanes is another. So is the promotions of being a good steward. Still, this crap goes on.
We gotta put a stop to this crap before we loose it all! It's going to take a lot of people, a lot of ideas and a lot of boots on the ground to make a difference.
Bill