Asian Carp Alert - Great Lakes in Peril

Lake Erie News Reel

January 2007 Edition

If there was ever a need for a fisherman to contact his legislators, and soon, this is it. The Asian carp (you抣l know it when it jumps into your boat) threatens the Great Lakes including Lake Erie. This is for real, folks.

A bill to fund the fight against the dangerous Asian carp has been introduced into both houses of Congress.

Rep. Judy Biggert, R-IL and Sen. Richard Durbin, D-IL, introduced the Great Lakes Asian Carp Barrier Act (HR553 and S336), on Friday.

If approved, the legislation will provide some $9 million to construct and maintain a permanent electric barrier on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal linking Lake Michigan and the Mississippi River.

Fisheries experts believe the barrier is vital to the future of the Great Lakes. The Asian carp is a voracious species that will jump out of the water when boats pass. The fish grow into the 60-pound range and could inflict serious injuries to a speeding boater.

But more important is the fish抯 appetite. It will eat just about any other fish. Fisheries biologists believe that if the Asian carp gets into the Great Lakes they will

out-compete native fish for food and habitat, disrupt the ecosystem, and crash the

region抯 $4.5 billion fishery.

揚assing this legislation would be one step closer to fully protecting our Great

Lakes,?said Tom Kiernan, president of the National Parks Conservation Association and co-chairman of the Healing Our Waters ?Great Lakes Coalition.

揂sian carp present a danger to people抯 health, the region抯 economy, and recreational opportunities in national parks and lakeshores. The electric barrier authorized by this legislation offers a manageable solution to keeping Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes. It抯 time for Congress to pass and fund this bill.?br />
Just last year, the barrier looked to be doomed except for a last minute amendment to the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Bill.

揟he threat posed by the Asian carp underscores the need to act now. If Asian Carp make it to Lake Michigan, they will turn the Great Lakes into giant carp ponds,?Kiernan said.

揇elaying action on this important bill could be the death knell for the Great

Lakes,?said Joel Brammeier, associate director for policy of the Alliance for the Great Lakes. 揑t抯 time to permanently fund the barrier to protect a resource that is the center of the region抯 economic and cultural identity.?br />
So far, more than 180 aquatic invasive species have been discovered in the Great Lakes. Sport fishermen are urged to contact their legislators to support passage of the funding bill.

The Asian carp was brought to the U.S. for study but two species梩he silver and the bighead carps梕scaped into the Mississippi River from southern aquaculture facilities in the early 1990s when the facilities were flooded.

The carp moved up river and became abundant, wiping out large fisheries of native species, causing severe hardship for the people who fish the river.

There is also the black carp and the grass carp which were made available in some areas to eat weeds choking waterways. What a huge mistake that was. (Article compiled with online news reports and reports from Great Lakes agencies and organizations)

MARK IT ON YOUR CALENDAR: The 70TH Cleveland Sport and Travel Outdoor Show is coming to the I-X Center March 14-18.

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