NSSF Urges Target Shooters and Hunters to Help Prevent Wildfires

Provides Warning Poster and Audio PSA

News provided by

May 19, 2014, 03:40 ET

NEWTOWN, Conn., May 19, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The cost of fighting wildfires will increase by nearly $500 million this year, according to new federal study, bringing the annual total to $1.8 billion—a staggering amount that does not include other tolls on property, wildlife, habitat and humans. With that in mind, the National Shooting Sports Foundation encourages target shooters and hunters to do their part to help prevent wildfires, and offers a poster and audio public service announcement containing prevention guidelines for use throughout this fire season.

The poster encourages firearms owners to know the rules, regulations and fire-danger levels before going shooting in fire-prone areas; to minimize the risk of fire by not using ammunition that is steel-jacketed or contains steel-core components, by not using tracer rounds or exploding targets; to remember that a vehicle or ATV's hot exhaust pipes could ignite a fire; and to properly extinguish campfires, among other fire-prevention measures.

The poster is available in two sizes—the standard 8.5 x 11 inches and a larger 11 x 17 size—and is suitable for displaying at shooting ranges, firearms retail shops and outdoor-equipment stores, as well as sharing on websites, blogs and social media sites.

NSSF's 30-second PSA is suitable for radio, television and Internet use. The straight-forward message is—"Wildfires have many causes—don't be one of them!" Download the mp3 file.

For more information, visit www.nssf.org/education/PreventWildfires.cfm

SOURCE National Shooting Sports Foundation