GLIN==> US Army Corps of Engineers Solicits Public Comment on Great Lakes Study (UNCLASSIFIED)

Submitted by Cassandra Kardeke <Cassandra.A.Kardeke at usace.army.mil>

---
> U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Solicits Public Comment on Great Lakes Study
>
> DETROIT – On Thursday, Jan. 27, 2011, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 
> the
> Corps, is holding a public scoping meeting in Traverse City, Mich., from 
> 2:00
> p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Hagerty Center, located at 715 E. Front St., to
> gather input on the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study,
> GLMRIS. The public is invited to attend this scoping meeting and to 
> provide
> comments on GLMRIS. Identical presentations about the study will be given 
> at
> 2:15 p.m. and 5:45 p.m., each followed by the comment period. The purpose 
> of
> GLMRIS is to evaluate a range of options and technologies to prevent the
> transfer of aquatic nuisance species, ANS, between the Great Lakes and
> Mississippi River through aquatic pathways.
>
> Using input obtained during the scoping period, the Corps will refine the
> scope of GLMRIS to focus on significant issues, as well as eliminate 
> issues
> that are not significant from further detailed study. Issues associated 
> with
> GLMRIS are likely to include, but will not be limited to: significant 
> natural
> resources, such as ecosystems and threatened and endangered species;
> commercial and recreational fisheries; recreational uses of the lakes and
> waterways; effects of potential ANS controls on waterways uses such as: 
> flood
> risk management, commercial and recreational navigation; and statutory and
> legal responsibilities relative to the effected waterways.
>
> In addition to Traverse City, the Corps will hold upcoming public
> scoping meetings in the following metropolitan locations: Cincinnati, 
> Ohio;
> Ann Arbor, Mich.; St. Louis, Mo.; Vicksburg, Miss; Milwaukee, Wis. and New
> Orleans, La. Specific meeting venues and dates will be announced in 
> Federal
> Register notices, the GLMRIS Web site and other media.
>
> The public scoping comment period will end on March 31, 2011. If you
> plan to make an oral comment, please register on the GLMRIS Web site. Oral
> comments will be limited to three minutes per commenter. Comments can also 
> be
> submitted electronically through the Web site. Each scoping meeting will
> consist of two separate three-hour sessions to allow as many attendees as
> possible.
>
>  An ANS is a nonindigenous species that threatens the diversity or
> abundance of native species; the ecological stability of infested waters; 
> or
> the commercial, agricultural, aquacultural or recreational activities
> dependent on such water. As a result of international commerce, travel and
> local practices, ANS have been introduced and spread throughout the Great
> Lakes and Mississippi River basins. Connected primarily by man-made 
> channels,
> ANS transfer was impeded historically by the poor water quality of those
> waterways. Recent water quality improvements have lessened that impediment
> making it more likely for ANS transfer between the two basins to occur.
>
> For more information regarding GLMRIS, the meeting agenda and scoping
> requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act, visit the GLMRIS 
> Web
> site at www.glmris.anl.gov or call Dave Wethington, GLMRIS project 
> manager,
> at 312-846-5522 or e-mail at David.M.Wethington at usace.army.mil.
>
> ###
>
> Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
> Caveats: NONE
>
>
> 
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