West Goshen Completes Firing Range Upgrades

West Goshen has completed construction of new safety measures at the township’s police firing range according to township engineer Richard Craig.

"With these new safety measure it would be extremely difficult for a bullet to leave the range," Craig said.

He added, "But nothing is impossible."

Craig, along with three West Goshen police officers, also met with an inspector from the National Riffle Association to inspect the new safety measures.

Those safety measures include a 640 feet long, 10 feet high timber fence to keep people out, a six feet tall chain-link fence topped with barbed wire and a regrading of the 30 feet berm that acts as a backstop to the range.

The new safety features will also include two concrete berms that be 180 feet long, three feet thick and nine feet tall.  The new design also calls for timber baffles that will start at eight feet of height and extend to 12 feet.

All of these measures are intended to keep bullets within the confines of the range and to keep out any unauthorized use.

According to Craig, the new features meet the N.R.A. standards and the inspector from the N.R.A. signed off on the range.

However, several residents who live next to the range continued to express their concerns about noise.

Several residents wanted to know if the N.R.A. survey covered noise or environmental impacts.

Craig said that impacts were beyond the reach of the N.R.A.

However, Craig said that the new features should help with the noise.

I'm not an acoustics engineer," Craig said.  "But I do believe that the baffles and the concrete berm will help redirect some of the noise."

In addition, the township is also purchasing sound stopping materials to cover the fences and the baffles.