OLYMPIA -- I do it, you do it -- every angler does it.

In this case, it is tying or pinching lead weights to our lines. Anglers have used lead weights for centuries, but it is time to consider other options.

Holly Davies, of the state Department of Ecology, recently sent me a photograph of hundreds of lead fishing weights found at the bottom of a short stretch of the Lewis River -- a steelhead and salmon stronghold.

That big pile of toxic metal got my attention. Many waterfowl -- especially loons, swans and diving ducks -- die when they mistake small fishing weights and lead shotgun shot for gravel. The birds eat gravel to help digest their food.

One small lead sinker in a bird can be a death sentence. One small sinker -- or even some lead dust -- in a human can cause a lot of health problems.

We banned lead paint years ago, but lead is still all over fishing tackle.

Ever stick a lead weight in your mouth or close a split-shot sinker with your teeth? I did that when I was a kid, but medical professionals now say that was a dumb move.

Anglers should wash their hands after handling lead sinkers, and they should use pliers to close split shot.

Lead shotgun shot is already illegal when hunting ducks and geese, as the birds were eating the spent shot that fell into the marsh. Trumpeter swans that winter in Washington are still dying from eating lead shot that landed in lakes and wetlands years and years ago.

And we all know that a lead split shot fishing weight is just a lead shotgun pellet with a little groove in the side.

Some states -- New York, Vermont, Maine and New Hampshire -- have already banned lead fishing weights that are a half-ounce or smaller. Other states are moving in the same direction, and many national parks -- including fishing hotspot Yellowstone National Park -- banned lead years ago.

It's just a matter of time before small lead weights are banned in most states, but we shouldn't wait. It's getting easier to find weights made of tungsten, steel, tin, bismuth and pewter -- especially in the small sizes that birds find so tasty.

I stopped using lead in my flies about eight years ago. The beads for my bead-head flies are now made of brass, tungsten or steel. I wrap non-toxic wire around the hooks of nymphs and streamers that I bounce near the bottom of rivers and lakes.

I started using non-toxic split shot -- usually made of tin or bismuth -- when Yellowstone banned lead years ago. I found that the non-toxic shot -- when is often painted green -- sinks just about as fast as lead and is less likely to hang up on the bottom rocks.

I suspect that the non-toxic shot sports a smoother surface, and the egg-shaped metal also seems to slither through the snags.

It's kind of nice to not worry about poisoning myself while fishing my happy brains out.

Bass anglers -- as usual -- are way ahead of the rest of us. You can find steel, tin or tungsten weights, jig heads, spinnerbaits, spoons and so on for bass fishing.

Bass anglers made catch-and-release popular long before fly anglers jumped on that wagon. Bass anglers are the techno geeks of the fishing world, and they're always on the leading edge.

Lead replacements are a little more expensive. I was in a sporting goods superstore the other day, and a package of six lead bullet sinkers was $3.69.
A package of four tungsten weights was $4.99.

But we anglers are used to stepping up to make our rivers and lakes cleaner.

I think losing lead will be most difficult for steelhead and salmon drift anglers. It takes a good chunk of weight to keep a bait or Corkie rolling along the bottom of a big river.

The photo that got my attention is of weights used for drift fishing.

The good news is that birds are unlikely to gulp down a drift-fishing weight, as they're pretty big.

But the bottom of rivers are a maze of rocks and fallen trees, and anglers break off tons of snagged lead each year.

I'm sure manufacturers will find a way to make steel or tungsten drift weights.

After all, it's time for all of us to get the lead out of our waters.

* Chester Allen is an outdoors columnist at The Olympian newspaper.