The DoD Wants Bullets That Kill AND Plant Seeds Where They Land

Bullets have one main purpose. I’m not saying guns or bullets are bad. This isn’t that kind of article. I’m just saying that they are generally used to kill and destroy. Now, the Department of Defense is hoping to create a new breed of bullet that do more than leave death in their wake. They leave plants. Yup, the DoD has put out a call to all scientists to develop a new biodegradable, seed-planting bullet.

The main focus of this initiative is training rounds. The military goes through hundreds of thousands of them at bases all around the world. Unfortunately, current training rounds just serve to pollute the environment for hundreds of years after they are fired and, as they corrode, they can wreak havoc on the water table.

In particular, the DoD is looking for bullets that spread the seeds of plants that can help mitigate some of the damage that current rounds have already done to ecosystem. Some of the materials currently being looked at include bamboo fiber and specially bio engineered seeds that can be embedded into bullets, germinating several months later in the ground.

If you think you’ve got a solution, you can still get in on the action. The DoD is accepting submissions until the first week of February.

Source: Inhabitat