Critical Asian carp barrier at risk
Congress urged to act against Great Lakes invaders

After a close call in which the Great Lakes could have lost one of its major protections against invasive species, especially the Asian carp, the Great Lakes Commission is urging Congress to take action to ensure that it doesn’t happen again.

The Commission is calling for Congress to pass the long-delayed Water Resources Development Act which, in addition to addressing other Great Lakes needs, provides for the permanent operation of an Asian carp barrier in the Chicago Sanitary and Shipping Canal.

The barrier faced being shut down before the U.S. Senate approved emergency legislation Thursday morning authorizing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to operate the facility on a temporary basis. The barrier had been schedule to cease operation on Monday, May 8, due to a lack of funds and limits on the funding authority.

“In order to provide authority for a permanent, effective barrier against Asian carp through the Chicago Sanitary and Shipping Canal, Congress must swiftly pass the Water Resources Development Act,” said Tom Huntley, chair of the Great Lakes Commission. “We can’t keep relying on stopgap measures to protect the Great Lakes against an invader that could wreak vast ecological damage and devastate our sportfishing industry.”

The barrier uses an electric field to prevent Asian carp and other invasive species from reaching the Great Lakes via the Mississippi River system, where they have become established. The Water Resources Development Act would provide permanent authority for the Corps of Engineers to operate the barrier and authorize funding to cover the cost.

The Asian carp is feared because its voracious appetite could devastate the food chain and sport- and commercial fishing if it should ever become established in the Great Lakes. Originally brought in to control algae in southern fish farms from which it escaped, these “aquatic vacuum cleaners” can grow to several feet in length and nearly 100 pounds.

“Our price tag for combating invasive species in the Great Lakes, such as the sea lamprey and zebra mussel, is already millions of dollars a year,” said Leslie Sgro, deputy director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

“It’s simply short-sighted not to make the relatively modest investment we need to protect ourselves against this new invader, particularly with our $4.5 billion Great Lakes sport fishing industry at risk.”

The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal barrier consists of two units, a temporary demonstration barrier and a more powerful permanent barrier that is partially completed. The stopgap measure authorizes the Corps to take over operation of the temporary barrier, but using funds originally designated for completion of the permanent barrier. The Water Resources Development Act would authorize both the completion of the more powerful barrier and permanent operation of both that barrier and the demonstration barrier as additional protection.

The Senate legislation now goes to a conference committee to be reconciled with the House supplemental bill, H.R. 4939, which did not include funding for the barrier.

The Water Resources Development Act has been introduced in each of the last three sessions of Congress, but has yet to be enacted.

The Great Lakes Commission, chaired by Lt. Gov. John Cherry (Mich.), is a nonpartisan, binational 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.