Asian Carp - Recent Events
Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS)
After six years, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers finally released the long-awaited report on how to keep Asian carp and other invasive species out of the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) Report outlined eight options on preventing 13 invasive species, including varieties of Asian carp, from transferring between the aquatic pathways of the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River basins. Congress authorized the USACE to conduct its study in 2007.
The alternative choices range from no additional federal actions to creating physical barriers along the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. The “No New Federal Action" option requires no additional cost and relies on the sustained activities including the existing electric barrier between the Mississippi River and Lake Michigan that has been, for years, the last line of defense against the Asian carp. This is the same line of defense that was proven ineffective in another recent study with initial findings from an USACE study indicating that fish can pass the electrical barriers by swimming in large groups or between barges.
The most expensive option, coming in at $18.4 billion, calls for hydrologic separation through physical barriers between the lakes and the Mississippi River and would take 25 years to complete. The study explains that two new reservoirs and tunnels would be needed to manage the flooding risks resulting from this option. A second hydrologic separation option would entail two physical barriers located close to the historical separation point of the basins. This option would still take 25 years to complete, but comes at the cost of $15.5 billion.
Three of the remaining approaches would also require 25 years of construction and one 10 years. These four programs would not quite separate the basins, but would place additional physical barriers — including specialized lock systems — at various locations where Asian carp could cross into Lake Michigan. Depending on the scale of infrastructure involved, costs would range between $8.3 billion and $15.5 billion.
A non-construction alternative rounds out the list of eight to maintain the present and ultimately ineffective controls, but adds measures such as public education, watercraft cleaning, removal, poisons, deterrent devices, etc., at an additional cost of $68 million annually.
While the study refrains from recommending any one option, the study leaves no doubt that the most effective way to stop invasive species from wreaking environmental and economic harm on the Great Lakes and Mississippi River communities is through the construction of a physical barrier. The report provides a road map for Congress to move forward to and take the next steps to implement the permanent long-term solution to protect the iconic waterways of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River.
After six years, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers finally released the long-awaited report on how to keep Asian carp and other invasive species out of the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) Report outlined eight options on preventing 13 invasive species, including varieties of Asian carp, from transferring between the aquatic pathways of the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River basins. Congress authorized the USACE to conduct its study in 2007.
The alternative choices range from no additional federal actions to creating physical barriers along the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. The “No New Federal Action" option requires no additional cost and relies on the sustained activities including the existing electric barrier between the Mississippi River and Lake Michigan that has been, for years, the last line of defense against the Asian carp. This is the same line of defense that was proven ineffective in another recent study with initial findings from an USACE study indicating that fish can pass the electrical barriers by swimming in large groups or between barges.
The most expensive option, coming in at $18.4 billion, calls for hydrologic separation through physical barriers between the lakes and the Mississippi River and would take 25 years to complete. The study explains that two new reservoirs and tunnels would be needed to manage the flooding risks resulting from this option. A second hydrologic separation option would entail two physical barriers located close to the historical separation point of the basins. This option would still take 25 years to complete, but comes at the cost of $15.5 billion.
Three of the remaining approaches would also require 25 years of construction and one 10 years. These four programs would not quite separate the basins, but would place additional physical barriers — including specialized lock systems — at various locations where Asian carp could cross into Lake Michigan. Depending on the scale of infrastructure involved, costs would range between $8.3 billion and $15.5 billion.
A non-construction alternative rounds out the list of eight to maintain the present and ultimately ineffective controls, but adds measures such as public education, watercraft cleaning, removal, poisons, deterrent devices, etc., at an additional cost of $68 million annually.
While the study refrains from recommending any one option, the study leaves no doubt that the most effective way to stop invasive species from wreaking environmental and economic harm on the Great Lakes and Mississippi River communities is through the construction of a physical barrier. The report provides a road map for Congress to move forward to and take the next steps to implement the permanent long-term solution to protect the iconic waterways of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River.
Bighead Carp
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On June 23, 2010, an invasive bighead carp was captured in Lake Calumet, 6 miles away from Lake Michigan. This is the first physical specimen that has been found in the Chicago Area Waterway System above the U.S. Army Corps of Engineer’s (USACE) Electric Barrier System. The fish was measured to be 34.6 inches long, weighed 19.6 pounds, and was probably about 3 to 4 years old, old enough to reproduce.
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Electric Barrier Operations
The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal connects the Mississippi River to the Great Lakes. In attempt to prevent the Asian Carp from entering the Great Lakes, the United States Army Corps of Engineers erected a dispersal barrier system on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. The electric barrier on the canal is designed to repel the carp back from entering Lake Michigan. There are three electrical barriers: Demonstration Barrier, Barrier IIA and Barrier IIB. The Demonstration Barrier has been operational since 2002. Barrier IIA was placed into full-time operation in 2009 and Barrier IIB was activated in April 2011. The Demonstration Barrier and Barrier IIB are in continuous operation, while Barrier IIA is in warm standby. |
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Issues of concern with the barrier include low lying areas of land positioned between the Des Plaines River, the Illinois and Michigan Canal and the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. During heavy rainfall events, these areas are prone to flooding. A significant rain could flood the banks allowing these fish to bypass the barrier and advance toward Lake Michigan. A report completed by the Corps evaluated the identified areas of potential bypass of fish through neighboring waterways upstream of the electric barriers during flooding and recommended construction of a barricade along the Des Plaines River, which was completed in October 2010, along with a stone blockage in the Illinois and Michigan Canal, completed in June 2010. A 13-mile concrete and steel mesh fence that splits the narrow divide between the Des Plaines River and the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, paid from the federal Great Lakes Restoration Fund, is designed to keep the Asian carp from breaching the low-lying strip of land between the river and the shipping canal during heavy rains. The fence is only 3 feet tall in some spots along the route, but rises to 8 feet in areas prone to deeper flooding and the mesh openings are designed to block passage for all but the smallest fish eggs and water.
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The barrier system requires periodic maintenance which was conducted in December of 2009. In order to conduct maintenance, the barrier needs to be shut down. To prevent invasive Asian carp from entering the lakes while the barrier is not turned on, fisheries managers treated a portion of the canal with poison resulting in a large scale fish kill in a five-mile stretch of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal on which the barrier resides. One Asian carp was found among the dead fish that was collected in the canal. However, subsequent netting fish revealed no Asian carp in the channel.
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After eDNA tests had indicated that bighead and silver carp may have been present lakeside of the barrier, a second round of poisoning occurred in 2010 to search for the Asian carp past the electric barrier. On May 20, officials dumped rotenone, a fish-killing poison, into two miles of the Little Calumet River below the O'Brien lock and dam. The purpose was to determine whether - and if so, how many – Asian carp might exist in that location where positive eDNA samples have been taken. The water was treated in one day, with a recovery phase of the operation that lasted approximately four to five days. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources closed the O'Brien Lock and Dam in the Cal-Sag Channel for a week while crews cleaned up the remains of approximately 100,000 pounds of dead fish. No Asian carp were recovered.
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In the spring of 2011, the USACE announced that the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal's electric dispersal barriers, aimed at keeping Asian carp out of Lake Michigan, were effective for large fish 5.4 inches or longer. However, higher electric power levels might be needed to immobilize small Asian carp about 2 to 3 inches long. The smaller fish are not believed to be close to the barriers, which are near Lockport. The closest small carp are more than 100 miles downstream of the barrier, below Starved Rock State Park, in Chillicothe, officials said. But the possibility that small fish could slip through has led to greater efforts to track eggs, larvae and young carp. If spawning is happening in the vicinity of the barrier, that could present a kind of a new and special threat, As part of a multimillion-dollar investment in fighting Asian carp, the Obama administration has given $7 million to help carry out the Asian Carp Monitoring and Rapid Response Plan.
As part of the Plan are new tools including underwater cameras, nets with super-tight holes, and a big-honking water gun. They are all part of a $7 million program to bolster the electric barriers put in place by the Army Corps of Engineers near Lockport, which are the main line of defense. |
In addition to implementing the plan, the Corps announced it was also turning up the juice on the barrier. The increase occurred in the fall of 2011. After significant testing to assess the safety and effectiveness of the barrier at these higher operating parameters, the testing showed there is no appreciable increase in risk to public safety with an increase of operational parameters from the current settings of 2.0 volts to the new settings of 2.3 volts. However, it also showed that operating barriers IIA and IIB concurrently increases the area of risk for a person in the water and an increased potential for sparking in adjacent fleeting areas. The Corps does not intend to operate barriers IIA and IIB simultaneously.
In May of 2012, the electric barrier system, the last line of defense between the Asian carp and the Great Lakes, experienced a 13-minute power outage. The outage began at 12:58 p.m. and affected the two of the three barriers that were operating at the time. Both barriers failed. Backup generators were activated, but a power surge prevented them from immediately delivering electricity to the barriers. Personnel at the site manually reset a circuit breaker to get the generators working.
Environmental DNA (eDNA)
Environmental DNA testing (eDNA) was developed at the University of Notre Dame to improve monitoring of invasive species. All fish, including Asian carp, release DNA into the environment. The DNA comes from mucus, intestinal lining shed with feces, cells from the urinary tract shed in urine, and cells from gills, or a combination of. The presence of species can be detected by filtering water samples, and then extracting and amplifying short fragments of the shed DNA. The objective is to use eDNA testing as an early detection tool to identify Asian carp locations. The eDNA provides indications of likely presence, but it does not yet provide information about Asian carp quantity that may be present, age, size, how they got there, or how long they may have been there.
eDNA has been used as an early detection surveillance tool since 2009. Asian carp eDNA has been detected in multiple portions of the Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS). In November of 2009, DNA monitoring tested positive for the presence of Asian carp beyond the barrier, 6 miles from Lake Michigan. The Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC) continues to use eDNA testing as an early indicator of possible carp presence and as a tool to steer efforts to stop the spread of these species into the CAWS.
In May of 2012, the electric barrier system, the last line of defense between the Asian carp and the Great Lakes, experienced a 13-minute power outage. The outage began at 12:58 p.m. and affected the two of the three barriers that were operating at the time. Both barriers failed. Backup generators were activated, but a power surge prevented them from immediately delivering electricity to the barriers. Personnel at the site manually reset a circuit breaker to get the generators working.
Environmental DNA (eDNA)
Environmental DNA testing (eDNA) was developed at the University of Notre Dame to improve monitoring of invasive species. All fish, including Asian carp, release DNA into the environment. The DNA comes from mucus, intestinal lining shed with feces, cells from the urinary tract shed in urine, and cells from gills, or a combination of. The presence of species can be detected by filtering water samples, and then extracting and amplifying short fragments of the shed DNA. The objective is to use eDNA testing as an early detection tool to identify Asian carp locations. The eDNA provides indications of likely presence, but it does not yet provide information about Asian carp quantity that may be present, age, size, how they got there, or how long they may have been there.
eDNA has been used as an early detection surveillance tool since 2009. Asian carp eDNA has been detected in multiple portions of the Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS). In November of 2009, DNA monitoring tested positive for the presence of Asian carp beyond the barrier, 6 miles from Lake Michigan. The Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC) continues to use eDNA testing as an early indicator of possible carp presence and as a tool to steer efforts to stop the spread of these species into the CAWS.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service currently processes eDNA samples at the Whitney Genetics Lab in Onalaska, Wisconsin. eDNA results from current monitoring efforts can now be found at http://www.fws.gov/midwest/fisheries/eDNA.html.
In 2014 the Service will implement a comprehensive, basin-wide Great Lakes eDNA Monitoring Program targeted to detect the genetic presence of two species of Asian carp: bighead carp and silver carp. The goal of the program is to use eDNA as an early detection monitoring tool for the genetic presence of bighead and silver carp DNA, and to use this information to help inform the efforts of other monitoring efforts, such as state directed netting and traditional methods or rapid assessment tools. Click here for the Summary of the 2014 Great Lakes eDNA Monitoring Program.
USACE is leading a two-year Asian Carp eDNA Calibration Study (ECALS) with the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reduce the uncertainty surrounding eDNA results. ECALS will investigate alternative sources and pathways for eDNA detections beyond a live fish. The study will also examine how environmental variables such as light, temperature and water velocity impact eDNA detections; explore the correlation between the number of positive samples and the strength of the DNA source; develop more efficient eDNA markers to cut the sampling processing time in half and model eDNA transport specific to the Chicago Area Waterway System.
In February 2013, an interim report for the Asian Carp Environmental DNA Calibration Study (ECALS) was released. Preliminary findings include:
Authorities announced that a second positive eDNA hit for the Asian carp was detected in Lake Michigan. (The first positive eDNA hit was from a water sample taken in 2010 in Calumet Harbor, outside of Chicago.) A water sample taken from Lake Michigan's Sturgeon Bay in Wisconsin in May of 2013 has tested positive for DNA from silver carp. The May testing included 50 water samples taken from the Green Bay area; they were among 282 from other areas along Lake Michigan. At this point, it is not known if the eDNA is from the presence of a live fish or from other potential sources such as boat hulls, bird feces, or contaminated bait buckets. As a result of the finding, the Wisconsin DNR and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will take more samples from the area to determine whether the positive hit was a fluke or something worse.
In October, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) announced that a single sample of DNA from a silver carp was discovered in the Kalamazoo River in Michigan. Two hundred water samples were taken in July 2014 along the Kalamazoo River and one of the of 200 samples tested positive for silver carp eDNA. The positive sample was taken from just below the Caulkins Dam. This sample represents the first time that Michigan has experienced a positive result for silver carp eDNA in Michigan’s Great Lakes waters outside of Maumee Bay. As a result of the finding, additional samples will be taken this month, MDNR staff will increase their presence along the Kalamazoo River to enlist anglers to report any Asian carp sights, and MDNR will be putting information in local bait shops to increase public awareness.
In 2014 the Service will implement a comprehensive, basin-wide Great Lakes eDNA Monitoring Program targeted to detect the genetic presence of two species of Asian carp: bighead carp and silver carp. The goal of the program is to use eDNA as an early detection monitoring tool for the genetic presence of bighead and silver carp DNA, and to use this information to help inform the efforts of other monitoring efforts, such as state directed netting and traditional methods or rapid assessment tools. Click here for the Summary of the 2014 Great Lakes eDNA Monitoring Program.
USACE is leading a two-year Asian Carp eDNA Calibration Study (ECALS) with the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reduce the uncertainty surrounding eDNA results. ECALS will investigate alternative sources and pathways for eDNA detections beyond a live fish. The study will also examine how environmental variables such as light, temperature and water velocity impact eDNA detections; explore the correlation between the number of positive samples and the strength of the DNA source; develop more efficient eDNA markers to cut the sampling processing time in half and model eDNA transport specific to the Chicago Area Waterway System.
In February 2013, an interim report for the Asian Carp Environmental DNA Calibration Study (ECALS) was released. Preliminary findings include:
- Storm sewers, fisheries sampling gear, fish-eating birds, dead fish carcasses, barges, and sediments may contribute to a positive eDNA detection without a live fish being present
- DNA can stay on these sources for a numbers of days
- Tagged-bird studies show large variations in bird movement and consumption of Asian carp in the wild, which may lead to positive detection of Asian carp eDNA in bird feces
- Shedding rates of DNA from Asian carp were not affected by different temperatures or flow rates of water
- DNA from Asian carp sperm can be detected for over two weeks after release from an Asian carp
Authorities announced that a second positive eDNA hit for the Asian carp was detected in Lake Michigan. (The first positive eDNA hit was from a water sample taken in 2010 in Calumet Harbor, outside of Chicago.) A water sample taken from Lake Michigan's Sturgeon Bay in Wisconsin in May of 2013 has tested positive for DNA from silver carp. The May testing included 50 water samples taken from the Green Bay area; they were among 282 from other areas along Lake Michigan. At this point, it is not known if the eDNA is from the presence of a live fish or from other potential sources such as boat hulls, bird feces, or contaminated bait buckets. As a result of the finding, the Wisconsin DNR and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will take more samples from the area to determine whether the positive hit was a fluke or something worse.
In October, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) announced that a single sample of DNA from a silver carp was discovered in the Kalamazoo River in Michigan. Two hundred water samples were taken in July 2014 along the Kalamazoo River and one of the of 200 samples tested positive for silver carp eDNA. The positive sample was taken from just below the Caulkins Dam. This sample represents the first time that Michigan has experienced a positive result for silver carp eDNA in Michigan’s Great Lakes waters outside of Maumee Bay. As a result of the finding, additional samples will be taken this month, MDNR staff will increase their presence along the Kalamazoo River to enlist anglers to report any Asian carp sights, and MDNR will be putting information in local bait shops to increase public awareness.
A single positive sample for silver carp was also identified from 200 samples taken this summer in the Fox River, a tributary of Lake Michigan in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Subsequent testing in the area failed to turn up any new positives. In addition to the rivers in Wisconsin and the Kalamazoo in Michigan, the following Michigan waters were tested and showed no evidence of Asian carp DNA: Gallen, Grand, Muskegon, Paw Paw and St. Joseph. In all, 1,950 samples from Lake Michigan tributaries were taken this summer.
Results of eDNA monitoring from the Midwest region are posted here: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/fisheries/eDNA.html.
Results of eDNA monitoring from the Midwest region are posted here: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/fisheries/eDNA.html.
Asian Carp Framework
To ensure a comprehensive response, the Obama Administration formed the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC) in 2009. Led by The White House Council on Environmental Quality’s Asian Carp Director, the ACRCC now includes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation and all eight Great Lakes states, as well as the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, and the City of Chicago.
In February 2010, a White House “Carp Summit” was held. The meeting which included Great Lakes’ Governors and Obama Administration officials from the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of the Interior, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and U.S. Coast Guard was to discuss strategies to combat the spread of Asian carp and ensure coordination and the most effective response across all levels of government. The result of the summit was a $78.5 million plan that outlines over 25 short and long-term actions. The Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework (Framework) calls for reduced openings of Chicago’s navigational locks, increased fish collection efforts through electro-shocking and netting operations within the waterway, expedited turnaround times on eDNA verification and doubled testing capacity to 120 samples per week, construction of barriers to address flooding events, additional chemical treatments in the case of barrier failure, and studies and research efforts. Updated in 2011, the Framework outlines an aggressive, multi-tiered strategy that includes Asian carp monitoring and netting, identifying and blocking pathways to the Great Lakes, and a series of other short- and long-term actions, including the development of long term biological controls.
Many had been urging Obama to appoint a federal coordinated response coordinator for Asian carp. In September, Obama did just that, naming John Goss as the “Asian carp Czar” or, the official title, chairman of the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee. The Carp Czar reports to an office in the White House and oversees the government-led effort to manage the species.
In February 2012, the Obama Administration released the 2012 Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework outlining 58 new and continuing actions that build upon the proactive efforts to protect the Great Lakes from Asian carp undertaken in the 2010 and 2011 Frameworks. The Framework focuses on sustainable, long term controls while permanent solutions are developed. In addition, the 2012 Framework outlines the priority actions planned and under way to address the threat of Asian carp invading the Great Lakes, including both management actions to prevent Asian carp introduction and establishment, and research to develop permanent controls on Asian carp populations. The 2012 Framework is posted on-line at http://www.asiancarp.us.
On July 24, 2013, the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC) announced an update to the Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework with a series of new measures to protect the Great Lakes from Asian carp. The Framework builds upon on the comprehensive plan the Administration created in 2010 to prevent this invasive species from developing self-sustaining populations in the Great Lakes. The 2013 Framework adds several initiatives to the proactive effort to combat Asian carp, including testing and deployment of new physical and chemical control tools, strengthening the electric barrier system in the Chicago Area Waterway System, and constructing a new project to physically separate the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basin at Eagle Marsh near Fort Wayne, Indiana.
In addition to the above projects, updates to the Framework in 2013 include:
To ensure a comprehensive response, the Obama Administration formed the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC) in 2009. Led by The White House Council on Environmental Quality’s Asian Carp Director, the ACRCC now includes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation and all eight Great Lakes states, as well as the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, and the City of Chicago.
In February 2010, a White House “Carp Summit” was held. The meeting which included Great Lakes’ Governors and Obama Administration officials from the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of the Interior, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and U.S. Coast Guard was to discuss strategies to combat the spread of Asian carp and ensure coordination and the most effective response across all levels of government. The result of the summit was a $78.5 million plan that outlines over 25 short and long-term actions. The Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework (Framework) calls for reduced openings of Chicago’s navigational locks, increased fish collection efforts through electro-shocking and netting operations within the waterway, expedited turnaround times on eDNA verification and doubled testing capacity to 120 samples per week, construction of barriers to address flooding events, additional chemical treatments in the case of barrier failure, and studies and research efforts. Updated in 2011, the Framework outlines an aggressive, multi-tiered strategy that includes Asian carp monitoring and netting, identifying and blocking pathways to the Great Lakes, and a series of other short- and long-term actions, including the development of long term biological controls.
Many had been urging Obama to appoint a federal coordinated response coordinator for Asian carp. In September, Obama did just that, naming John Goss as the “Asian carp Czar” or, the official title, chairman of the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee. The Carp Czar reports to an office in the White House and oversees the government-led effort to manage the species.
In February 2012, the Obama Administration released the 2012 Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework outlining 58 new and continuing actions that build upon the proactive efforts to protect the Great Lakes from Asian carp undertaken in the 2010 and 2011 Frameworks. The Framework focuses on sustainable, long term controls while permanent solutions are developed. In addition, the 2012 Framework outlines the priority actions planned and under way to address the threat of Asian carp invading the Great Lakes, including both management actions to prevent Asian carp introduction and establishment, and research to develop permanent controls on Asian carp populations. The 2012 Framework is posted on-line at http://www.asiancarp.us.
On July 24, 2013, the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC) announced an update to the Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework with a series of new measures to protect the Great Lakes from Asian carp. The Framework builds upon on the comprehensive plan the Administration created in 2010 to prevent this invasive species from developing self-sustaining populations in the Great Lakes. The 2013 Framework adds several initiatives to the proactive effort to combat Asian carp, including testing and deployment of new physical and chemical control tools, strengthening the electric barrier system in the Chicago Area Waterway System, and constructing a new project to physically separate the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basin at Eagle Marsh near Fort Wayne, Indiana.
In addition to the above projects, updates to the Framework in 2013 include:
- Designing and constructing a mobile electric dispersal barrier that can be deployed in the Chicago Area Waterway System or other waterways to move or clear fish and act as a temporary barrier for experimental or emergency situations
- Continuing design and construction of an additional permanent electric barrier in the Chicago Area Waterway System
- Developing and field testing Asian carp physical control tools such as water guns and netting; chemical control tools such as microparticles, selective toxins and carbon dioxide; and pheromone attractants
- Designing barriers preventing the transfer of aquatic nuisance species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins at the Eagle Marsh, Ohio Erie Canal and Little Killbuck Creek potential pathway connections, as part of Great Lakes Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS)
- Identifying controls, including hydrologic separation scenarios, to prevent the transfer of aquatic nuisance species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins through a GLMRIS report in late 2013
- Increasing bi-national collaboration to stop the illegal transport of Asian carp and other aquatic invasive species across state and international borders
- Transitioning operations and processing of environmental DNA (eDNA) from the Army Corps to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Federal agency responsible for fisheries management
- Expanding sampling efforts in southern Lake Michigan, western Lake Erie, and other potential invasion spots
- Completing an eDNA calibration project to help managers better understand what finding positive eDNA monitoring results implies about the presence or absence of Asian carp in a water body
- Continuing fish tagging and utilization of sonar equipment to evaluate electric barrier effectiveness
Congress and Legislation
In November of 2007, Congress authorized the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to conduct a study to prevent the transfer of aquatic invasive species between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River Basins. The Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) was authorized with the following language:
“FEASIBILTITY STUDY. The Secretary, in consultation with appropriate Federal, State, local, and nongovernmental entities, shall conduct, at Federal expense, a feasibility study of the range of options and technologies available to prevent the spread of aquatic nuisance species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basins through the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and other aquatic pathways. (Section 3061(d) of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007)”
Once Congressional authorization and appropriations were received, USACE could begin work on a study. Funding to begin the GLMRIS study came in July of 2009. The study was divided into two primary areas: one to address the Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS) and a second, Other Pathways outside of the Chicago Area Waterway System. The project originally scheduled for a recommended plan for Focus Area I of GLMRIS, the CAWS, in 2015, Congress also got involved in the Asian Carp debate with multiple hearings as well as the introduction of various pieced of legislation. The CARP Act which stands for Close All Routes and Prevent Asian Carp Today, was introduced by U.S. Representative Dave Camp and U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow. The CARP Act, would:
Another bill was introduced in Congress - the Permanent Prevention of Asian Carp Act. The bill was introduced on 29, 2011 in the Senate by Sen. Debbie Stabenow and Richard Durbin and by Rep. Dave Camp in the House. The bill requires the Army Corps to conduct a study on the feasibility and best means of implementing the hydrologic separation of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basins to prevent the spread of aquatic nuisance species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basins through the CSSC and other aquatic pathways. The legislation would require the study to be completed within 18 months (including two interim reports to ensure the study is making progress) and puts the CEQ in a position to oversee that the study gets done on time.
The bill reintroduced in 2012, the Stop Invasive Species Act, retained the 18 month deadline for completion of the study and a report to Congress.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced on May 8, 2012 that it will provide Congress and the public the opportunity to identify a potential permanent Asian carp solution in 2013, much earlier than expected. With this important new step under its Great Lakes Mississippi River Interbasin Study, the Corps will release in late 2013 an assessment of the best options for keeping Asian carp out of the Great Lakes, including the preliminary estimated costs and mitigation requirements for each option. This will allow for public and Congressional input on which options merit more detailed project design. This new step will result in a more focused path forward that could mean faster implementation of a permanent solution for protecting our Great Lakes from Asian carp.
Despite the Corps announcement, the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate passed a provision in the Transportation Bill that would speed completion of a federal study key to stopping the Asian carp’s march to Lake Michigan. Rep. Dave Camp and Sen. Debbie Stabenow offered the measure. The act requiring the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to complete the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study within 18 months of the bill’s enactment marks the first legislation passed to shrink the GLMRIS timeline since the initial introduction of the Stop Asian Carp Act in 2010. Section 1538 of the Transportation bill expedites the completion of the original Section 3061(d) of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007.
In November of 2007, Congress authorized the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to conduct a study to prevent the transfer of aquatic invasive species between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River Basins. The Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) was authorized with the following language:
“FEASIBILTITY STUDY. The Secretary, in consultation with appropriate Federal, State, local, and nongovernmental entities, shall conduct, at Federal expense, a feasibility study of the range of options and technologies available to prevent the spread of aquatic nuisance species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basins through the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and other aquatic pathways. (Section 3061(d) of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007)”
Once Congressional authorization and appropriations were received, USACE could begin work on a study. Funding to begin the GLMRIS study came in July of 2009. The study was divided into two primary areas: one to address the Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS) and a second, Other Pathways outside of the Chicago Area Waterway System. The project originally scheduled for a recommended plan for Focus Area I of GLMRIS, the CAWS, in 2015, Congress also got involved in the Asian Carp debate with multiple hearings as well as the introduction of various pieced of legislation. The CARP Act which stands for Close All Routes and Prevent Asian Carp Today, was introduced by U.S. Representative Dave Camp and U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow. The CARP Act, would:
- Immediately close the barriers and locks into the Great Lakes
- Expedite the installation of interim barriers in rivers where no barriers currently exist
- Enhance existing barriers and monitoring systems to prevent fish from crossing into the Great Lakes
- Grant full authority to the Army Corps of Engineers to eradicate the Asian carp and prevent them from entering the Great Lakes
Another bill was introduced in Congress - the Permanent Prevention of Asian Carp Act. The bill was introduced on 29, 2011 in the Senate by Sen. Debbie Stabenow and Richard Durbin and by Rep. Dave Camp in the House. The bill requires the Army Corps to conduct a study on the feasibility and best means of implementing the hydrologic separation of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basins to prevent the spread of aquatic nuisance species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basins through the CSSC and other aquatic pathways. The legislation would require the study to be completed within 18 months (including two interim reports to ensure the study is making progress) and puts the CEQ in a position to oversee that the study gets done on time.
The bill reintroduced in 2012, the Stop Invasive Species Act, retained the 18 month deadline for completion of the study and a report to Congress.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced on May 8, 2012 that it will provide Congress and the public the opportunity to identify a potential permanent Asian carp solution in 2013, much earlier than expected. With this important new step under its Great Lakes Mississippi River Interbasin Study, the Corps will release in late 2013 an assessment of the best options for keeping Asian carp out of the Great Lakes, including the preliminary estimated costs and mitigation requirements for each option. This will allow for public and Congressional input on which options merit more detailed project design. This new step will result in a more focused path forward that could mean faster implementation of a permanent solution for protecting our Great Lakes from Asian carp.
Despite the Corps announcement, the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate passed a provision in the Transportation Bill that would speed completion of a federal study key to stopping the Asian carp’s march to Lake Michigan. Rep. Dave Camp and Sen. Debbie Stabenow offered the measure. The act requiring the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to complete the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study within 18 months of the bill’s enactment marks the first legislation passed to shrink the GLMRIS timeline since the initial introduction of the Stop Asian Carp Act in 2010. Section 1538 of the Transportation bill expedites the completion of the original Section 3061(d) of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007.
Lake Erie
Five Bighead carp have been individually collected between 1995 and 2003 in western Lake Erie. Since 2004, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have monitored western Lake Erie in Sandusky and Toledo, Ohio using trammel nets in response to these discoveries. This surveillance sampling has not resulted in any additional collections of bighead or silver carp. These samplings suggest a reproducing population does not exist in Lake Erie.
However, Asian carp are advancing up the Wabash River system which could allow for their potential movement into the Maumee River, a tributary to Lake Erie. Under normal conditions, there is no direct link between the Wabash River and the Maumee River. However, tributaries and drainage ditches near Eagle Marsh, a 705-acre restored wetland on the southwest side of Fort Wayne, Indiana, provide a potential connection under certain flooding conditions.
Five Bighead carp have been individually collected between 1995 and 2003 in western Lake Erie. Since 2004, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have monitored western Lake Erie in Sandusky and Toledo, Ohio using trammel nets in response to these discoveries. This surveillance sampling has not resulted in any additional collections of bighead or silver carp. These samplings suggest a reproducing population does not exist in Lake Erie.
However, Asian carp are advancing up the Wabash River system which could allow for their potential movement into the Maumee River, a tributary to Lake Erie. Under normal conditions, there is no direct link between the Wabash River and the Maumee River. However, tributaries and drainage ditches near Eagle Marsh, a 705-acre restored wetland on the southwest side of Fort Wayne, Indiana, provide a potential connection under certain flooding conditions.
To address the advance of the Asian carp towards Lake Erie, Indiana crews installed a nearly 1,200-foot-long, 8 feet high fence designed to prevent adult carp from using the northeastern Indiana marsh to swim from the Wabash River system into the Maumee River and then onto Lake Erie during floods. The fence is bolstered by almost 120 concrete barriers. Construction of the main fence and a supplemental 500-foot-long debris catch fence began in early September. This is a short-term option while the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and other federal agencies work to develop a permanent solution to prevent Asian carp from slipping into the Great Lakes through an Indiana marsh.
On July 13, 2012, officials announced that six water samples taken from Sandusky and north Maumee bays tested positive for the presence of Asian carp environmental DNA in Michigan and Ohio waters. Four samples from Sandusky Bay, in Ohio waters, tested positive for bighead carp eDNA, while two samples from north Maumee Bay, in Michigan waters, were positive for silver carp eDNA. In response to the positive test results, officials from the Michigan and Ohio DNRs, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and White House Council on Environmental Quality are developing a plan of action in collaboration with the eDNA research team to obtain follow-up samples and test results as quickly as possible. Test results from future water samples will dictate the nature of further response methods.
On July 13, 2012, officials announced that six water samples taken from Sandusky and north Maumee bays tested positive for the presence of Asian carp environmental DNA in Michigan and Ohio waters. Four samples from Sandusky Bay, in Ohio waters, tested positive for bighead carp eDNA, while two samples from north Maumee Bay, in Michigan waters, were positive for silver carp eDNA. In response to the positive test results, officials from the Michigan and Ohio DNRs, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and White House Council on Environmental Quality are developing a plan of action in collaboration with the eDNA research team to obtain follow-up samples and test results as quickly as possible. Test results from future water samples will dictate the nature of further response methods.
