greyhound
Member
I remember in June when they first tried to shut down this club. Some guy (who had just moved there, btw) was complaining how he couldn't
take a nap on the weekend.
Apparently, that didn't work so now they've sicced this enviromental group (which if you'll note, was just started this summer) on them.
Hey, if they're supposed to clean the shot out of the river, fine, they should do it. That's not the long term goal here, though, - they want this club gone, gone, gone. Look for this more and more often in the east as land becomes more scarce and idiots buy houses near shooting ranges without really considering what that means.....
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Group plans to sue Gaithersburg gun club, state
http://www.gazette.net/200341/weekend/a_section/182266-1.html
by Ellen Shiau
Staff Writer
Oct. 10, 2003
GAITHERSBURG -- An environmental watchdog group plans to file a lawsuit against the state and a Gaithersburg gun club if both parties fail to address concerns of lead pollution in Great Seneca Creek.
The Potomac Riverkeeper, a nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring and protecting the Potomac River, announced Monday its intent to file suit against the National Capital Skeet and Trap Club and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, said Ed Merrifield, the Potomac Riverkeeper's executive director.
Under a land agreement with the state, the skeet and trap club has operated for more than 20 years on 100 acres in Seneca Creek State Park.
Tests conducted by the state in July found normal levels of lead in Great Seneca Creek, according to the Maryland Department of the Environment.
However, the club and DNR have not obtained permits to dispose lead shot in the creek and surrounding areas as required by the federal Clean Water and Resource Conservation and Recovery acts, according to the Potomac Riverkeeper..
The gun club is also operating as an open dump for lead shot and clay targets in a floodplain, which violates the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, according to the group.
In some parts of the creek, lead shot can be scooped out in large handfuls, and fragments from clay targets can be found, Merrifield said. "They have to stop shooting lead into the flood plain, and they have to clean it up," he said.
Merrifield said the Potomac Riverkeeper would file a formal complaint in federal court in early December if the club and state do not correct the violations. Under federal law, a 60- to 90-day notice must be given before filing suit, he said.
The Potomac Riverkeeper, which launched this summer, became involved in the issue after a fisherman noticed lead shot in the creek, Merrifield said.
However, Merrifield said others -- including 11 canoeists pelted by lead shot in 1991 -- have raised similar concerns in the past. "It's not like DNR hasn't known about this for a long, long time," he said.
A phone call to the skeet and trap club was not returned.
Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman Heather Lynch said the department would not comment until the legal action had been resolved.
Similar lawsuits in other states, such as New York and Illinois, have been filed under the same federal acts with varying degrees of success, said Lisa Goldman, a staff attorney with the Georgetown University Law Center Institute for Public Representation.
In some instances, courts have ordered landowners to stop polluting and clean waterways, said Goldman, who represents the Potomac Riverkeeper in the suit.
In June, the natural resources department acknowledged that the land agreement between the club and the state had expired.
For the past year, residents living near the club have worked to prevent the club from renewing its agreement because of the club's impact on the quality of life of residents.
Lynch declined to comment on the status of the club's land agreement with the state.
take a nap on the weekend.
Apparently, that didn't work so now they've sicced this enviromental group (which if you'll note, was just started this summer) on them.
Hey, if they're supposed to clean the shot out of the river, fine, they should do it. That's not the long term goal here, though, - they want this club gone, gone, gone. Look for this more and more often in the east as land becomes more scarce and idiots buy houses near shooting ranges without really considering what that means.....
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Group plans to sue Gaithersburg gun club, state
http://www.gazette.net/200341/weekend/a_section/182266-1.html
by Ellen Shiau
Staff Writer
Oct. 10, 2003
GAITHERSBURG -- An environmental watchdog group plans to file a lawsuit against the state and a Gaithersburg gun club if both parties fail to address concerns of lead pollution in Great Seneca Creek.
The Potomac Riverkeeper, a nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring and protecting the Potomac River, announced Monday its intent to file suit against the National Capital Skeet and Trap Club and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, said Ed Merrifield, the Potomac Riverkeeper's executive director.
Under a land agreement with the state, the skeet and trap club has operated for more than 20 years on 100 acres in Seneca Creek State Park.
Tests conducted by the state in July found normal levels of lead in Great Seneca Creek, according to the Maryland Department of the Environment.
However, the club and DNR have not obtained permits to dispose lead shot in the creek and surrounding areas as required by the federal Clean Water and Resource Conservation and Recovery acts, according to the Potomac Riverkeeper..
The gun club is also operating as an open dump for lead shot and clay targets in a floodplain, which violates the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, according to the group.
In some parts of the creek, lead shot can be scooped out in large handfuls, and fragments from clay targets can be found, Merrifield said. "They have to stop shooting lead into the flood plain, and they have to clean it up," he said.
Merrifield said the Potomac Riverkeeper would file a formal complaint in federal court in early December if the club and state do not correct the violations. Under federal law, a 60- to 90-day notice must be given before filing suit, he said.
The Potomac Riverkeeper, which launched this summer, became involved in the issue after a fisherman noticed lead shot in the creek, Merrifield said.
However, Merrifield said others -- including 11 canoeists pelted by lead shot in 1991 -- have raised similar concerns in the past. "It's not like DNR hasn't known about this for a long, long time," he said.
A phone call to the skeet and trap club was not returned.
Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman Heather Lynch said the department would not comment until the legal action had been resolved.
Similar lawsuits in other states, such as New York and Illinois, have been filed under the same federal acts with varying degrees of success, said Lisa Goldman, a staff attorney with the Georgetown University Law Center Institute for Public Representation.
In some instances, courts have ordered landowners to stop polluting and clean waterways, said Goldman, who represents the Potomac Riverkeeper in the suit.
In June, the natural resources department acknowledged that the land agreement between the club and the state had expired.
For the past year, residents living near the club have worked to prevent the club from renewing its agreement because of the club's impact on the quality of life of residents.
Lynch declined to comment on the status of the club's land agreement with the state.