We have been contracted by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office to remediate safety and environmental hazards at the gun range training center in Lithia, FL. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office maintains a gun range and training center for Hillsborough County, the surrounding Counties, and Local and Federal Law Enforcements bureaus in the Tampa area. The Hillsborough Range is under contract with over 20 separate agencies utilizing eight (8) separate firing zones. Over the course of several years, the protective berms backing the ranges became overloaded with lead ammunitions, posing safety and environmental hazards.

We utilized our in-house construction crew to screen the protective berms at firing ranges #2, #4, #5, #6, #7 and #8. Soil along the entire length of each berm was removed in order to collect the maximum volume of spent bullets and casings. Approximately 2 feet of soil into the face of the berm behind the target wall was removed. Surface soil approximately three (3) at the base of the berm was also removed to a depth of roughly 6-inchs below grade to remove any residual material. The screening unit was set up with ¼-inch mesh screen in order to remove bullets, casing and any other debris. Soil was then loaded into the screening machine to separate the material. Collected metal was placed in 55-gallon drums and processed at a metal recycling center. Soil removed at each protection berm was returned to restore the berms to their original configuration. Additionally, we provide continued maintenance of the full containment trap at Range #6 which includes the cleanup/removal of spent bullets for recycling. Furthermore, the equipment and surrounding areas are cleaned using a HEPA type vacuum.

To date, approximately 40,000 pounds of spent bullets have been removed and recycled. Based on the successful results of the lead reclamation completed by Handex, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office is planning to start an annual removal project to preserve the protective berms’ safety and implement a new management practice.