January 13, 2011
LANSING - Michigan
Attorney General Bill Schuette today announced he will renew efforts to protect
Michigan's environment and economy by continuing Michigan's lawsuit aimed at
stopping the march of Asian carp into the Great Lakes. Schuette was joined by
Gov. Rick Snyder's Office of the Great Lakes Director Patty Birkholz and the
Michigan United Conservation Clubs.
"Standing by
and letting Asian carp invade the Great Lakes would be an unprecedented
ecological and economic disaster," said Schuette. "We must defend Michigan's
unique environment and fight to keep Michigan jobs."
Schuette met
with leaders of Michigan's environmental and sportsmen's communities this week
to form a united front in the fight to block Asian carp. These groups included
MUCC, Trout Unlimited, Michigan Steelhead and Salmon Fishermen's Association,
National Wildlife Federation, Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council, Nature
Conservancy, and the Natural Resources Defense Council.
"The imminent
invasion by Asian carp through the Chicago area waterways is one of the most
significant threats ever to the Great Lakes," said Patty Birkholz, the
Director of Gov. Rick Snyder's Office of the Great Lakes. "As a state, we
must join with others and take all necessary actions to stop the invasion. The
Office of the Great Lakes and others in the Department of Natural Resources and
Environment stand ready to help any way possible."
"Asian Carp
prevention is of critical importance to the ecology and economy of the Great
Lakes," said Dr. Bryan Burroughs, Executive Director, Michigan Trout
Unlimited. "Unfortunately, it appears that it is going to take much work to
make the clear solutions happen. Fortunately, we have an Attorney General that
remains committed to doing everything within the judicial branch to continue
moving us to a solution. We are grateful for Mr. Schuette's commitment to this
important fight."
"The
sportsmen and women of Michigan and the Great Lakes region deserve better than
the Army Corps of Engineers' lackluster efforts to stop Asian carp from entering
the Great Lakes," said Erin McDonough, MUCC Executive Director. "We
expect our federal and state leaders to take immediate, aggressive actions that
will preserve our sportfishing heritage and $7 billion Great Lakes sportfishery.
MUCC applauds Attorney General Schuette's commitment to live up to this
expectation by continuing Michigan's legal front to protect the Great Lakes and
our outdoor heritage."
"Asian carp
pose an extreme threat to the Great Lakes and our economy. If these monster
invasive fish colonize the Great Lakes, the damage will be devastating," said
Andy Buchsbaum, Regional Executive director of the National Wildlife
Federation's Great Lakes Regional Center. "But so far, the response of the
federal government has been too slow, particularly in pursuing an effective
permanent barrier that will once and for all keep the invasive carp out of the
lakes. For that reason, National Wildlife Federation supports the efforts of
Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette to spur the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
to install a permanent barrier to stop the carp."
Schuette's
suit calls for both long-term and immediate actions by the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.
·
Schuette is asking the Court to force the Army Corps of Engineers
to shorten their planning to create a permanent ecological barrier between the
Mississippi and Great Lakes from five years to 18 months. This is vital to
stopping not only the flow of invasive species into the Great Lakes, but to stop
their movement down into the Mississippi basin.
· While
the study is being completed, Schuette is asking for:
o
Increased activity in a number of areas to stop the Asian carps' advance,
including:
o Operating locks in a way that limits the
movement of the fish;
o Installing other interim physical barriers to
fish passage;
o Increased monitoring for evidence of the fish
beyond current electrical barriers using the best available techniques,
including environmental DNA (eDNA)testing; and
o Targeted poisoning and netting in Chicago-area
waterways.
Schuette
noted that the eDNA technology employed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to
detect the presence of Asian carp beyond barriers in the Chicago area was
validated earlier this month by a paper published in the peer-reviewed
scientific journal, Conservation Letters, published by the Society for
Conservation Biology. It is this information that has played a key role
Michigan's case before the U.S. District Court for Northern Illinois in
Chicago.
Based upon
his expertise in invasive species and the results of eDNA testing in Chicago
waterways, independent expert witness Dr. David Lodge of the University of Notre
Dame has testified that the threat of an Asian carp invasion is real. In fact,
Dr. Lodge testified, "there is a risk, a very imminent risk of invasion," later
adding that such "invasions are often irreversible."
The repeated
discovery of Asian carp eDNA beyond electrical barriers in Chicago, in addition
to the discovery of a live carp beyond the barrier, brought together a coalition
of five Great Lakes states in the suit, with Michigan being joined by Wisconsin,
Minnesota, Ohio and Pennsylvania on July 19, 2010.
The most
recent district court action on the case occurred on January 7, 2011 in which
the Court considered plans to schedule the ongoing suit. In addition, Michigan
has filed an appeal of a December 2, 2010 ruling that denied Michigan's motion
for a preliminary injunction that would put immediate remedies in place, such as
closing locks and increasing monitoring, as the underlying case goes forward.
Michigan's brief supporting its request for the preliminary injunction is due to
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit by January 26, 2011.
Renewed
Congressional action is another important avenue to address the Great Lakes
states' concerns. The CARP Act and the Permanent Prevention of Asian Carp Act
were both sponsored by U.S Representative Dave Camp (R-MI) in the 111th
Congress. The legislation mirrored Michigan's motion for preliminary
injunction, calling for immediate actions to block the passage of Asian carp
into the Great Lakes and requiring the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to expedite
a study to determine the best way to permanently separate the Mississippi River
Basin from Lake Michigan.
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