Public Hearing in St. Louis Metro Area – Alton, IL
Tuesday, February 8, 2-8pm
Even though we are in the middle of the winter season, the Asian carp are swimming toward the Great Lakes and decision makers are deciding what, if anything, to do. At the same time, scientists continue to study the quagga mussel in Lake Michigan, one of dozens of animals poised to invade the Mississippi River from the Great Lakes. We need you to take time in your hectic schedule to speak out and let decision makers know we want real action and we want it now.
The clock is ticking through March 31st 2011 for a public comment period around the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basin Interbasin Feasibility Study (GLMRIS). Even though the name of the study isn’t, well, that captivating, it is an important study because its focus will determine if we implement permanent solutions to stop invaders like Asian carp and quagga mussels from spreading between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins. {Continue Reading »}
Asian Carp—those huge, rapidly producing monster fish—are on the brink of devastating the Great Lakes. And they are not the only invasive species that is threatening the lakes and the Mississippi River Basin.
Help put a stop to the spread of invasive species by telling the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to take bold, definitive action now!
There are 3 ways you can help prevent the spread of invasive species (like Asian carp and zebra mussels) by permanently separating these great river basins.
- Send a brief comment today.
- Attend the public hearing in Chicago on Wednesday Dec 15, anytime between noon-7pm.
- Download the project management plan and comment on it before March 31, 2011
Brief Background
Finally, 3 years after Congress mandated that the U.S. Corps of Engineers find the best way to prevent the spread of Asian Carp and other invasive species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basin, their Project Management Plan is ready for public comment.
Unfortunately the Corps’ study designed to take too long, and the goal has been watered down to deal with risk reduction instead of focusing on prevention.
More Information
Background information on Asian carp
Read all of our posts on Asian carp
For Immediate Release
Thursday, July 1, 2010
The discovery of spawning Asian carp in the Wabash River shows the crisis is advancing on multiple fronts and demands aggressive and immediate action to deal with the Asian carp crisis, says a coalition of national and Great Lakes groups.
The carp were found downstream of a floodplain that separates the Wabash from the Maumee River and Lake Erie, near the city of Fort Wayne, Ind., according to recent press and congressional statements.
The discovery and acknowledgment of the finding by the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee comes a week after the committee announced a live Asian carp was found just six miles from Lake Michigan in Chicago’s Lake Calumet. The 3-foot-long, 20-pound sexually mature male was the first Asian carp found beyond the last locks protecting the Great Lakes, and miles beyond the electric barrier meant to keep the devastating fish out of the lakes.
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Action Deadline: TUESDAY JUNE 29TH, 10 AM
Bighead carp captured in Lake Calumet on 6/22/10 (IDNR)
Members of the House and Senate are circulating a letter among their colleagues asking them to sign on. The letter is to President Obama and urges him to immediately strengthen the barrier and implement all other measures necessary to stop Asian carp from migrating into the Great Lakes. It also asks that the Administration expedite its study to develop an aggressive strategy for permanent hydrologic separation of the Mississippi River and Great Lakes basins. These steps are necessary if we are to keep Asian carp out of Lake Michigan and prevent countless other invasions between the two basins. This issue is particularly urgent given the recent discovery of a live Asian carp near Lake Michigan.
Please take a moment to contact Senators Durbin (202-224-2152) and Burris (202-224-2854) and your Representative (look up here) and urge them to sign onto this letter.
The deadline to sign on is Tuesday, June 29 at noon. Congressional members can contact the following staff to sign on: Katie Murtha (Rep. Dingell), Ben Gielow (Rep. Ehlers), Alice Yates (Sen. Levin), or Lauri Hettinger (Sen. Voinovich).
The following members have already signed on: Reps. Dingell (MI), Slaughter (NY), and Ehlers (MI), and Sens. Levin (MI) and Voinovich (OH).
Fish finding affirms eDNA testing and points to need for aggressive action to stave off fish invaders
PRESS RELEASE
June 23,2010
Asian carp captured in Lake Calumet on 6/22/10 (IDNR)
The nightmare scenario of Asian carp entering the Great Lakes through Chicago waterways is closer to reality as the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee announced today that they had captured an invasive bighead carp [a species of invasive Asian carp] in Lake Calumet, 6 miles away from Lake Michigan. The fish’s capture bolsters repeated environmental DNA tests which have shown that the carp have evaded an electrical barrier intended to prevent their movement out of canals artificially connecting the Great Lakes and Mississippi River system. Scientists and government regulators agree that the invasive fish pose a dire threat to the Lakes because of their size and voracious appetites.
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