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The Canadian Army Will Train To Kill In An Environmentally Friendly Gun Range

The new “green” range makes unloading a clip onto a target environmentally kosher.

​Think what you will about the operations of the Canadian Forces (CF), but the next time soldiers unload a clip of ammunition onto insurgent fighters, rest assured—they'll have partly learned to shoot in an environmentally friendly gun range.

The CF just triumphantly announ​ced that its Valcartier base in Quebec will be the first ever to use a "green small arms firing range" outfitted with bullet catchers that prevent casings from rusting and then seeping into groundwater flow in local areas.

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"The bullet catchers retain metal residue from small arms projectiles," said the CF release. "To reduce the speed of projectiles, steel boxes filled with sand were built and installed on the existing range butts and covered in self-healing membranes. When bullets puncture the membrane, the holes close over on their own."

After the "self‑healing membrane" grows over the holes, the casings are dropped into a receptacle that drains the rusty water into a safer treatment system that prevents seepage.

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But the catcher wasn't designed solely just to fit into some benevolent environmental mandate by the CF—according to the release it was also done with an eye toward building a "cost effective" bullet catcher.

In fact, an independent study following the progress of the project found that the new Nicosie green r​anges were "54% more economical than the conventional sand butts after 20 years of use," which "offers a long-term solution for managing metal residues from projectiles and should also reduce the environmental impact to almost zero."

After testing numerous prototypes, Defence Research and Development Canada, the scientific and military RND wing of the CF, created a working system that has been tested by troops since 2011. The latest iteration was officially confirmed for wider usage.

bullet catchers retain metal residue from small arms projectiles

Besides preventing toxic seepage, the gun range has the added benefit of reducing loud sounds as bullets hit targets. Instead of annoying dinging or binging, soldiers reported that the self-healing membrane absorbed the bullet sounds as much as the bullet. One military scientist in Canada is heralding it as "helping to ensure the sustainability of firing ranges."

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Firing ranges are increasingly being seen as outdated training tools. That's because unloading pricey bullets all day into sand traps is an expensive endeavor for any military. It's part of the reason simulators, which soldiers tend to dislike, are replacing certain live-fire training exercises.

Canadian soldiers I've spoken to in the past have said there's no replacing live range training to shooting a gun prototype at virtual targets. At least not yet given the current state of VR technology.

Canadian Defence officials review the bullet catchers. Image: DRDC

But the CF high command might have different plans. General Denis Thompson, head of the special forces, told the Canadian P​ress late last year that simulators are being "seriously looked at," as a "complementary" training methods, with commercial first person shooter games like C​all of Duty even playing a role in combat preparations.

If these economically and environmentally friendly bullet catchers can expand the use of gun ranges in military training, it'll sure keep the troops happy. Plus, according to the government release, it falls in line with the Department of ​National Defence's overall environmental policy objectives.

Objectives I would add, if these ranges are any evidence, that come with an economic caveat.