Asian Carp and the Great Lakes
The threat of a voracious predator knocking on the door of Lake Michigan has caught the attention of the public, media and government. Now is the time to not only develop a short term strategy to keep the carp out of Lake Michigan, but also to look long-term at the implications of artificially linking two of the greatest watersheds, the Great Lakes and Mississippi, together. The artificial linkage has created a superhighway for invasive species with the latest species to hit the on-ramp being the silver and big head Asian carp.
The Draft Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework is notable for integrating the work of various agencies and stakeholders. However, the framework primarily deals with the short-term which narrowly looks at the crisis surrounding Asian carp. This fails to address the larger issues concerning inter-basin transfer of species from the Great Lakes to the Mississippi watershed. For example, the electric barriers currently in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) were originally installed to keep the Round Goby, an invasive Eurasian species introduced into the Great Lakes via shipping ballast waters, out of the Mississippi watershed and not to prevent Asian carp from reaching the Great Lakes. Fortunately, the barriers are in place and are being adapted to manage Asian carp, however, next time we may not be this lucky. The time is now to start crafting a plan that will separate the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basin and create a permanent off-ramp for the invasive species superhighway before Asian carp or the next invasive species threaten our native ecosystems.
Separation of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basins
Invasive Species Coordination Web Site
Thank Our Senators for Calling for Study to Consider Separation