GLIN==> Great Lakes Commission endorses legislation to accelerate efforts to keep Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes

For immediate release: March 3, 2011

 

Great Lakes Commission endorses legislation to accelerate efforts to keep
Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes

 

Ann Arbor, Mich. – The Great Lakes Commission calls on Congress to adopt
legislation introduced today that would accelerate efforts to prevent the
movement of aquatic invasive species – especially Asian carp – between the
Great Lakes and Mississippi River watersheds.

 

The Stop Asian Carp Act of 2011, first introduced in Congress last year
following discovery of a live Asian carp in the Chicago Area Waterway System
(CAWS) six miles from Lake Michigan, requires the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers to complete a study on hydrological separation of the two
watersheds within 18 months.

 

The bills, introduced by Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Richard Durbin
(D-IL), and Rep. Dave Camp (R-MI), would require evaluation of the
environmental benefits and costs of measures to separate the Great Lakes
from the Mississippi River watershed.

 

In a resolution adopted last February, the Great Lakes Commission,
representing all eight Great Lakes states as well as the Canadian provinces
of Ontario and Québec, called on Congress and the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers to embrace ecological separation as the best permanent solution
for preventing the movement of aquatic invasive species and the best
approach for safeguarding the health of both the Mississippi River and the
Great Lakes.

 

The State of Illinois joined with the seven other Great Lakes states in
calling for the legislation. “We support the study of separation as a
long-term, sustainable solution to the spread of aquatic invasive species
between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River. However any study of
separation must incorporate current uses of Chicago area waterways,” said
Marc Miller, director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

 

In a parallel effort, the Great Lakes Commission and the Great Lakes and St.
Lawrence Cities Initiative are leading an accelerated, privately funded
study, Envisioning a Chicago Area Waterways System for the 21st Century,
that will develop and evaluate options for hydrological separation. This
effort will be completed by January 2012.

 

The Stabenow-Durbin-Camp bill would provide the Corps with authority and
resources to accelerate completion of a study of hydrological separation in
the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, the key artificial connection between
the Great Lakes and Mississippi River. 

 

“The stakes are just too high and require urgency on the part of the Corps
of Engineers,” said Patty Birkholz, director of Michigan’s Office of the
Great Lakes. “Michigan and the other Great Lakes states rely heavily on the
sport and commercial fisheries that would be put at risk by Asian carp. The
potential environmental and economic damages are catastrophic.”

 

The Corps has already initiated a study on interbasin movement of invasive
species, including Asian carp, known as the Great Lakes and Mississippi
River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS). However, its projected five-year timeline
has been criticized as taking too long, given the proximity of Asian carp to
Lake Michigan. 

 

“We applaud this legislation,” said Great Lakes Commission Executive
Director Tim Eder, adding “it reflects a level of concern that more closely
matches that of our member states and our Canadian partners.”

 

Contact: Tim Eder

Email: teder at glc.org 

Office: 734-971-9135

Cell: 734-604-7281

 

### 

 

The Great Lakes Commission, chaired by Jim Tierney, Assistant Commissioner
for Water Resources at the New York State Department of Environmental
Conservation, is an interstate compact agency established under state and
U.S. federal law and dedicated to promoting a strong economy, healthy
environment and high quality of life for the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence region
and its residents. The Commission consists of governors' appointees, state
legislators, and agency officials from its eight member states. Associate
membership for Ontario and Québec was established through the signing of a
"Declaration of Partnership." The Commission maintains a formal Observer
program involving U.S. and Canadian federal agencies, tribal authorities,
binational agencies and other regional interests. The Commission offices are
located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Learn more at www.glc.org.

 
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