JOINT BASE CAPE COD The drive out to the Sierra Range, one of the few active gun ranges on Camp Edwards, is long, dusty and bumpy. Upon arrival, there’s an open field filled with grass-covered berms. Brightly colored plastic targets sit upright, riddled with bullet holes.
The range, one of four currently active on Joint Base Camp Cod, is used to train members of the National Guard in using M4 and M16 rifles. Members use the range following virtual and short-range pistol training.
A soldier has to hit 23 of the 40 targets from distances of 50 and 300 meters to meet their annual training requirement, and they have just over three minutes to complete the task.
Politicians express concerns about Cape machine gun range
April 16, 2021
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BOURNE, Mass. (AP) Both U.S. senators from Massachusetts and the congressman who represents Cape Cod are expressing concerns about potential environmental effects from a machine gun training range planned for a National Guard base in the region.
The range at Camp Edwards on Joint Base Cape Cod has received clearance under both federal and state environmental policy, but some neighbors have brought their concerns to Congress, according to a report Thursday in the Cape Cod Times.
“We believe in the mission of the Guard, and we also agree with our constituents that our state & federal government has an obligation to take all possible care in determining any potential impacts that the construction of this range may incur even if that means going above and beyond what is required by the statute,” the letter to Massachusetts Army National Guard dated last week said.
JOINT BASE CAPE COD With plans set to move forward with a proposed multipurpose machine-gun range, members of the state’s Congressional delegation echoed the concerns of the community and environmental organizations in a joint letter late last week.
U.S. Sens. Edward Markey and Elizabeth Warren and U.S. Rep. William Keating shared their concerns in a letter sent to the Massachusetts Army National Guard on Friday, and requested additional action prior to construction of the proposed gun range at Camp Edwards.
In response, members of Joint Base Cape Cod spoke out on the stringent measures taken to ensure the multipurpose gun range is environmentally safe.
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