Army Corps of Engineers presented 8 options to help prevent Asian carp migration
By John Flesher
AP Environmental Writer
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — Placing dam-like structures in Chicago waterways would be an almost foolproof method of preventing Asian carp from reaching Lake Michigan, while a less pricey electric barrier system also has solid prospects for shielding the Great Lakes from the invasive fish, according to a scientific analysis released Wednesday.
The report was designed to help policymakers choose an effective plan that wouldn’t take too long to carry out. It determined that other methods under consideration, such as using strobe lights and water cannons to frighten the carp away, might also be helpful but would be less likely to succeed.
The study was conducted by scientists with the University of Notre Dame, the U.S. Forest Service and Resources for the Future, an independent research institution. Their conclusions were based on a survey of experts in fisheries management, aquatic nuisance species and other relevant topics.
They were asked to rate the likelihood for success of a variety of strategies for shutting down what’s considered the most direct route to the Great Lakes for Asian carp: a network of rivers and canals around Chicago that link Lake Michigan to the Mississippi River watershed.
“An important finding of this study is that knowledgeable experts identified clear differences in the likely effectiveness of some Asian carp prevention technologies as opposed to others,” said John Rothlisberger, a Forest Service aquatic ecologists and one of the report’s writers. “Physical separation stands out from the rest as having the least associated uncertainty and the highest probability of preventing the introduction of Asian carp into Lake Michigan.”
Bighead and silver carp, which gobble huge amounts of plankton on which many native species also subsist, were imported from Asia in the 1970s and have infested the Mississippi and its tributaries. Scientists say if they overrun the Great Lakes, they could upend the ecosystem and damage a $7 billion fishing industry.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers this month presented eight options for fortifying the Chicago waterways to prevent Asian carp and other invaders from migrating between the two giant watersheds. The alternatives included walling them off with physical structures, which could cost more than $15 billon and take 25 years to accomplish, and other methods, including deploying electric barriers in addition to an existing one in a canal 37 miles from Lake Michigan.
The experts concluded that the electric barrier could prevent 85 to 95 percent of carp introductions.
Other deterrent methods that were considered ranged from depleting oxygen or boosting carbon dioxide levels in parts of the waterways.
