"The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recently published recommendations for reducing exposure to lead and noise at indoor firing ranges [NIOSH 2009]. However, workers and users of outdoor firing ranges may be exposed to similar hazards. This followup document examines exposures at these ranges and recommends steps to reduce such exposures. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, more than 1.2 million Federal, State, and local law enforcement officers work in the United States [DOJ 2012, 2011]. These officers are required to train regularly in the use of firearms and may be exposed to hazardous levels of lead and noise if they train at outdoor ranges. In addition to law enforcement, NIOSH estimates that shooting ranges employ 40,000-60,000 workers, and that about 15% of the U.S. population, or 34.4 million people, participate in target shooting [NSSF 2010]. Several studies of outdoor firing ranges have shown that exposure to lead and noise can cause health problems, particularly among employees and instructors [NIOSH 2011; Tripathi et al. 1991; Goldberg et al. 1991]. Lead exposure occurs mainly through inhalation of lead dust, skin contact with lead from bullets, or ingestion (e.g., eating or drinking with contaminated hands) [NIOSH 2009]. Workers and shooters involved in shooting, cleaning operations, collecting casings, and handling spent bullets may also be exposed to lead. An estimated 9,000 non-military outdoor ranges exist in the United States, with millions of pounds of lead from bullets shot annually. Because outdoor ranges are typically built in an open area, lead and noise are more widely dispersed. Outdoor ranges need less cleaning and maintenance than indoor ranges. However, despite the natural ventilation of outdoor firing ranges, personal breathing zone lead levels can exceed the NIOSH recommended exposure limit (REL) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) permissible exposure limit (PEL) [Mancuso et al. 2008]. Some outdoor ranges have ballistic baffles overhead and concrete walls and structures on the sides. The air in these spaces can become stagnant and lead to increased exposures." - NIOSHTIC-2

Exposure to airborne and settled dust at firing ranges is a well-known hazard that puts employees at risk for lead poisoning. Nine firearms instructors (FAIs) were studied over a 4-week period while working at a U. S. Coast Guard indoor firing range to determine if their work placed them at risk of overexposure to lead. Blood was collected at the beginning and end of the study to determine if a change in blood lead levels (BLLs) had occurred throughout the study. Questionnaires were also issued to obtain demographic, occupational, & extracurricular activity information to determine any other potential sources of lead exposure. Personal air lead exposures were measured for the instructors during weaponry qualification. To determine the effectiveness of range cleaning, surface wipes of lead dust before and after cleaning were collected from the floor. Mean BLLs from FAIs at baseline was 2.4 μg/dL compared to 2.3 μg/dL at the end of the study, more than 20 times below OSHA's standard of 40 μg/dL. Furthermore, the mean airborne lead was 2.7 μg/m3, also more than 20 times below OSHA's standard of 50 μg/m3. One of our hypotheses was to find a relationship between changes in BLL and mean airborne lead; however, no correlation was found. We also found no relationship between changes in BLL, mean airborne lead, the number of hours per month spent inside the range and the number of lead and jacketed rounds fired at the range. When evaluating the cleaning methods, paired t-tests were used to measure the post- to pre-cleaning differences for weekly and monthly cleaning practices. Statistically significant differences were found (p

This Alert presents five case reports that document lead and noise exposures of law enforcement officers and students. The Alert examines firing range operations, exposure assessment and control methods, existing regulations, and exposure standards and guidelines.