Colorado’s first rifle season will open Oct. 12 this year, and hunters across the state are getting prepared and sighting in at local ranges to get perfectly in tune to take their shot this fall. With that in mind, it’s an excellent time to learn more about Colorado’s Nontoxic Bullet Replacement Hunting Program.

Following the 2023 passing of HB 23-1036, Colorado Parks and Wildlife has worked with several partners to demonstrate the effectiveness of non-lead ammunition for hunters in an effort to reduce toxic ammunition on the landscape for the benefit of people and wildlife.

In this episode of the Colorado Outdoors Podcast, learn all about this program from the people key in its creation and implementation.

Colorado State Representative Barbara McLachlan, who authored the bill in the state assembly, joins the show to discuss what prompted her to introduce the legislation. 

Show host John Livingston is also joined by co-host Kristin Cannon, a Deputy Regional Manager for CPW who is overseeing the implementation of the program, and the two interview an incredible panel of guests that detail the impacts of lead ammunition to wild animals and the effectiveness and benefits of copper alternatives.

Included on the panel are Bryan Bedrosian of Sporting Lead-Free, Leland Brown from the Non-Lead Partnership and Aaron Kindle of the National Wildlife Federation.

Give this episode a listen and hear for yourself why making the switch from lead to copper might be part of your hunt plan this year.