Asian Carp Update: Very Big and Very Bad

by Clark Bullard, Board of Directors

Asian carp are voracious plankton feeders that can quickly dominate rivers and lakes by gobbling up the same food that sustains native fish populations. Accidentally introduced to the lower Mississippi River in the early 1990s, they now live in the Illinois River, where they grow so large they have no natural predators. They are rapidly approaching the Great Lakes, which have already been weakened by other invasive species.

The carp are already overtaking and out-competing native fish in the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. Boaters have been injured by carp weighing more than 25 lbs that jump high out of the water when frightened by the sound of a boat motor. Local residents fear that things could get far worse: e.g., the tragic death of a water skier, or the economic impact of diminishing populations of native fish that are prey for eagles. If Asian carp invade the Great Lakes, they could devastate the region’s $7 billion fishing industry and permanently alter how recreational boaters, anglers and tourists use and enjoy the lakes and their many tributaries.

Michigan and several other Great Lakes states have been asking the US Supreme Court to order immediate temporary closure of the locks that separate Lake Michigan from the canals and rivers that run through Chicago. Their initial pleas for emergency action have been unsuccessful, and the Court has not yet set a date for hearing the case. Vociferous objections by barge and tour boat operators who use the locks on a daily basis have dominated the headlines.

Prairie Rivers Network is working with regional and national groups to focus public attention on the long-term solution to these and other invaders — restoring the natural divide between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins to prevent invasions in either direction via the Chicago waterways. Four possible locations for such a barrier have already been identified, about 25 miles inland from the locks that are currently drawing the attention of the public and the press. Waterborne commerce could thrive on both sides of the divide. A modern 21st century intermodal freight terminal could be built there, connecting barges to a new rail “beltway” that could relieve congestion currently caused by slow trains moving through the city.

This solution could also require extensive re-plumbing of Chicago’s sewage treatment infrastructure, which was designed a century ago to use Lake Michigan as a giant toilet tank to flush partially treated sewage down the Illinois River. One option would require a pipeline to pump the sewage over the basin divide. The alternative would be to do what Prairie Rivers has been advocating for many years – strengthen water pollution regulations to force Chicago to do what other Great Lakes cities are required to do – fully treat its sewage so it can be safely discharged into Lake Michigan.

Asian carp are not the first animals to threaten to cross from one basin to another through the Chicago area waterways; zebra mussels and the round goby have already invaded the Mississippi River system from the Great Lakes via this route. An underwater electric “fence” installed in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal in 2002 was too late to stop the round goby invasion. In 2006 a stronger one was completed to stop Asian carp from heading north into the Great Lakes, and an improved twin-fence design became operational in the summer of 2009. Within a month, however, carp DNA was found upstream of the fences.

Staff scientist Traci Barkley has been leading Prairie Rivers’ efforts to upgrade water quality standards in the Chicago area. Ironically, Traci conducted some of the early research on the electric fence prior to joining Prairie Rivers Network. At a recent public hearing in Chicago, she reminded top federal officials that the electric fence and lock closures are half-measures at best, and that we must act quickly to permanently close the connection between the basins.

Prairie Rivers Network and our partners have been successful in communicating the urgency of the problem, and things are starting to happen. Responding to grassroots pressure, the White House held a summit with Great Lakes governors in February to announce the Administration’s Asian carp strategy, and sent top officials from the White House and four other federal agencies to the Chicago stakeholder meeting. The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure held a hearing on the carp threat in February.

At this point Illinois is seen by other states and by federal officials as the villain, as it seeks to protect Chicago boating interests from the economic impacts of lock closures. Prairie Rivers Network, meanwhile, is focusing on developing a permanent solution: a long overdue modernization of transportation and wastewater treatment infrastructure that will protect not only the Great Lakes but also the entire Mississippi River basin from northbound and southbound invaders alike. We want Illinois to be the biggest part of the solution.