Dollars continue to flow for Asian carp control

PORTAGE | Federal and state officials said Thursday that Asian carp control efforts in the Great Lakes would continue this year with congressional commitments to maintain funding similar to the previous fiscal year. 

U.S. Asian carp czar John Goss said efforts such as environmental DNA sampling, research on fish habits and rapid response fish catches so far are proving effective in stopping Asian carp from gaining a foothold in the Great Lakes. Goss spoke Thursday at the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee's first Indiana public meeting this year.

"We are all very committed to protecting the ecosystem in the Great Lakes," Goss, of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, said.

More than $100 million in federal funds from the 2010 and 2011 fiscal years has been spent on Asian carp prevention efforts, according to a presentation by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency senior adviser Bill Bolen.

The Obama administration formed the committee in 2009 to help coordinate federal and state responses to the Asian carp threat.

The committee is concerned about how the carp could devastate the Great Lakes' ecology and commercial fishing industry. The goal is to stop the advance of the species. Officials have verified the spawning of Asian carp about 115 miles south of the electric barriers in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal.

Kelly Baerwaldt, fisheries biologist with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, said environmental DNA monitoring efforts in Chicago waterways are expected to resume in May. She said the Army Corps is in the early stages of a study to figure out alternative ways fish DNA could end up in the waterway — since no live fish were found last year — and also study fish movements in the water system.

In addition to barriers already operating, the Army Corps of Engineers plans to award its first construction contract to build a permanent electric barrier between one completed last year and a demonstration barrier, said Col. Fred Drummond, Chicago district commander for the Army Corps.

Kay Nelson, director of environmental affairs for the Northwest Indiana Forum, said she's still concerned about proposals for long-term Asian carp control such as installing physical barriers on the Grand Calumet and Little Calumet rivers or building a deep tunnel in Northwest Indiana. She said region businesses that depend on the waterway and residents who could be affected by any resulting flooding need to be taken into consideration.

"Northwest Indiana is worried about long-term management of Chicago Area Waterway System going forward," Nelson said.

At this point, the Army Corps is conducting the long-term Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study to figure out what technologies or options could stop invasive species such as Asian carp from moving between the basins.

About 50 people were at the meeting at the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission building.