chloe
09-25-2011, 04:54 PM
The Army Corps has promised to conclude by 2015 a long-range study of methods for cutting off potential avenues for species to transfer between the two basins, including separating them by installing dams or other structures. But carrying out whatever the agency recommends could take many more years, and money will be tight. Environmental activists, state and local officials, Indian tribes and others across most of the Great Lakes region are pleading with the Corps to move faster.
Five states _ Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin _ are pressing a federal lawsuit that accuses the Army Corps and Chicago's municipal water agency of operating a public nuisance and demands the quickest possible action to physically separate the Great Lakes and Mississippi systems. The attorneys general from those states and New York said in August they would try to assemble a nationwide coalition in favor of separation.
Many of the states that are new members of the coalition have suffered ill effects of invasions by species such as zebra and quagga mussels, which hitched rides from central Europe to the Great Lakes in the ballast tanks of oceangoing freight ships. After colonizing the Great Lakes, they moved into the Mississippi basin and have infested waterways as far south as the Arkansas River and west to Lake Mead, which supplies water for drinking and irrigation to much of southern Nevada, southern California and Arizona.
"With jobs at stake and the ecology of our waters at risk, this national coalition will make our message loud and clear: It is time to shut down the invasive species highway," Schuette said. "I am honored to be joined by attorneys general from across our country asking for immediate action to combat a looming crisis in our waters."
The Army Corps declined to comment on Schuette's announcement. Corps officials have said repeatedly their schedule was reasonable given the complex scientific and engineering issues involved. Maj. Gen. John Peabody, who until recently was commander of the Corps' Great Lakes and Ohio River Division, said last month he welcomed the involvement of state officials in developing the study.
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=17045703
What is the big deal with asian carp just wondering?
Five states _ Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin _ are pressing a federal lawsuit that accuses the Army Corps and Chicago's municipal water agency of operating a public nuisance and demands the quickest possible action to physically separate the Great Lakes and Mississippi systems. The attorneys general from those states and New York said in August they would try to assemble a nationwide coalition in favor of separation.
Many of the states that are new members of the coalition have suffered ill effects of invasions by species such as zebra and quagga mussels, which hitched rides from central Europe to the Great Lakes in the ballast tanks of oceangoing freight ships. After colonizing the Great Lakes, they moved into the Mississippi basin and have infested waterways as far south as the Arkansas River and west to Lake Mead, which supplies water for drinking and irrigation to much of southern Nevada, southern California and Arizona.
"With jobs at stake and the ecology of our waters at risk, this national coalition will make our message loud and clear: It is time to shut down the invasive species highway," Schuette said. "I am honored to be joined by attorneys general from across our country asking for immediate action to combat a looming crisis in our waters."
The Army Corps declined to comment on Schuette's announcement. Corps officials have said repeatedly their schedule was reasonable given the complex scientific and engineering issues involved. Maj. Gen. John Peabody, who until recently was commander of the Corps' Great Lakes and Ohio River Division, said last month he welcomed the involvement of state officials in developing the study.
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=17045703
What is the big deal with asian carp just wondering?