GLIN==> RELEASE: Antiquated animal import legislation root cause of Asian carp crisis

MEDIA RELEASE
For immediate release
February 28, 2011

Antiquated animal import legislation root cause of Asian carp crisis

Conservation and fishing groups are calling on the federal government to
improve outdated laws and prevent the next invasion

Buffalo, NY (February 28, 2011) - Asian carp were allowed into this country
under a law governing animal imports that was passed in 1900, and which has
remained unchanged, despite a drastically different global trade reality. As
two species of Asian carp, the bighead and silver carp, knock at the door of
the Great Lakes, conservation and fishing groups are calling on federal
officials to finally update import screening laws before the next invader
gets here.

"Stopping Asian carp should have happened before the first shipment. This
incredible threat, this incredible expense, was avoidable," said Jennifer
Nalbone, Director of Navigation and Invasive Species for Great Lakes United.
"It's time for the antiquated Lacey Act to be modernized so that we never
have to fight off another invasion like this again."

During the 111 years since the Lacey Act was adopted, only about 40 animal
groups have been prohibited under this legislation, and usually long after
the animals have been imported, escaped into the wild, and are causing harm.
By modernizing the Lacey Act, the U.S. Congress can empower the FWS to first
assess the potential risks associated with a species proposed for import
before deciding whether to allow or prohibit its trade into the United
States.

"Right now, the next species that might terrorize the Great Lakes could be
on its way to the U.S.," said Max Muller, Policy Director for Environment
Illinois. "We need Congress to plug the gaping loophole that allows invasive
species to be imported into the country, and leaves states like Illinois
holding the bag."

Bighead and silver carp are just two of the non-native fish and wildlife
species that have been imported into the U.S. and that are becoming
established and spreading across the country, causing significant
environmental and economic damage. Scientists have been working to detect,
monitor and respond to these threatening species and others for decades.

"In hindsight, if Asian carp had not been allowed into North America, we
would have avoided a crisis that very well may permanently alter the ecology
of the Mississippi River and could forever change the Great Lakes, two of
the largest and most important ecosystems in this country," said Phil Moy,
Fisheries and Invasive Species Specialist from Wisconsin Sea Grant and chair
of the Technical and Policy Workgroup for the Asian Carp Regional
Coordinating Committee.

The northern snakehead is another species imported into the country under
the Lacey Act, and is out-competing other species for food and habitat. The
species was imported for the Asian food market and pet trade and first
discovered in the wild in a Maryland pond in 2002, where they were released
by someone who no longer wanted them. Although the snakeheads were
eradicated from the pond, they later began appearing in the Potomac River
and are now well established in the Potomac River and several of its
tributaries in Maryland and Virginia. One northern snakehead was caught in
Chicago's Burnham Harbor in 2004. Northern snakeheads are aggressive
predators that can push out native fish species. According to a risk
assessment performed by Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans, they
could establish in portions of the Great Lakes, including Lake Erie and Lake
St. Clair.

In addition to Asian carp and northern snakehead, aquarium clams and snails,
like the Asiatic clam and the banded and oriental mystery snails, have
established populations throughout the region. If screened for invasiveness
before importation, all of these species could have been prevented from
being imported into the country.

"In this globalized world, animals are traded across continents every day,
and the rules governing the live animal trade in this country need to be
brought into the 21st Century," said Dr. Phyllis Windle, National
Environmental Coalition on Invasive Species (NECIS) spokesperson.

"We need to stop the Asian carp, and we also need to learn a lesson from all
this," said Captain Rick Unger, President of the Lake Erie Charterboat
Association. "It's time to make the changes necessary to ensure the next big
invader doesn't threaten the Great Lakes fishing and boating community."

"Our screening law was outmoded 4 decades ago when Asian carp first entered
the country," said Joel Brammeier, president of the Alliance for the Great
Lakes. "We have to slam the barn door closed before another new invasion is
unleashed."

As a leading import market, the United States receives hundreds of millions
of non-native animals each year. Often, they escape from captivity, are
dumped by those who no longer want them, or are released into ecosystems by
floods and storms. These non-native animals can spread widely, crowd out
native wildlife, fundamentally alter natural systems, and spread infectious
pathogens and harmful parasites.

Contacts:

*	Jennifer Nalbone, Great Lakes United, (716) 983-3831, jen at glu.org
*	Max Muller, Environment Illinois, (312) 869-2629,
max at EnvironmentIllinois.org
*	Rick Unger, Lake Erie Charter Boat Association, (216) 401-6231,
rungerchpd at aol.com
*	Joel Brammeier, Alliance for the Great Lakes, 312-939-0838 x224,
jbrammeier at greatlakes.org
*	Dr. Phyllis Windle, National Environmental Coalition on Invasive
Species, (301) 345-8516 pnwindle at gmail.com
*	Asian carp expert: Dr. Phil Moy, Wisconsin Sea Grant, (608)
263-5133, pmoy at aqua.wisc.edu

Resources:

Risk Assessment for Northern Snakehead (Channa argus) in Canada:
http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/csas-sccs/Publications/ResDocs-DocRech/2005/2005_07
5-eng.htm

Factsheet on the Lacey Act with examples of other imported invasive species
and diseases:
www.necis.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/2011-screening-factsheet-FINAL.pdf

Great Lakes United is an international coalition of individuals and
organizations dedicated to protecting and restoring the Great Lakes and St.
Lawrence River ecosystem: www.glu.org

 

 

_________________________________________________________
Brent Gibson
Director, Communications
Great Lakes United
613-482-1324 x509
 <mailto:bgibson at glu.org> bgibson at glu.org |  <http://www.glu.org/>
www.glu.org

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