Great Lakes Echo (https://greatlakesecho.org/tag/great-lakes/page/16/)
(MI) The Associated Press – After nearly four decades as a fishing guide on the Great Lakes, Pat Chrysler has seen enough damage from invasive species to fear what giant, ravenous Asian carp could do to the nation’s largest bodies of freshwater. “It’s like introducing piranhas to the Great Lakes,” Chrysler said from South Bass Island in Lake Erie, which teems with walleye, perch and other fish that draw anglers from near and far. More
(MI) Detroit Free Press – State and federal agencies hunting for Asian carp have reopened a critical lock leading to Lake Michigan that was closed last week, after failing to find any Asian carp there. Crews dragged fishing nets through a 5 1/2 -mile stretch of the Cal-Sag channel near the O’Brien lock; it was closed to barges during the net operation Friday. The channel is an offshoot of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, and the lock is just 6 miles from Lake Michigan. More
(WI) Milwaukee Journal Sentinel – Federal officials reported late Tuesday that a large-scale netting operation on a Chicago-area waterway above the electric fish barrier has yielded no Asian carp. Three weeks ago the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced that water samples in the Cal-Sag channel about six miles south of Lake Michigan tested positive for Asian carp DNA. More
(DC) The Washington Post – The poisoned fish began floating to the surface in the cold Illinois dawn, but as scientists and ecologists began hauling their lifeless catch to shore, they found only one carcass of the predator they targeted — the ravenous Asian carp. Never before have Illinois agencies tried to kill so many fish at one time. By the time the poison dissipates in a few days, state officials estimate that 200,000 pounds of fish will be bound for landfills. But they say the stakes — the Great Lakes ecosystem and its healthy fish population — could hardly be higher. More
(NY) New York Times – As the SuperFreakonomics chapter on global warming suggests, solutions that are initially viewed as repugnant sometimes gain acceptance over time. Consider, for example, that environmental groups have supported a “last-ditch effort” by Illinois environmental officials to dump a toxic chemical into a canal. The purpose? To target and kill the giant and destructive Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes and potentially bringing about the “collapse of the Great Lakes sport and commercial fishing industry.” More
(IL) Chicago Tribune – Dozens of boats combed the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal starting in the pre-dawn hours today, ultimately finding a lone Asian carp among tens of thousands of poisoned fish. After officials launched what’s believed to be the largest deliberate fish kill in state history Wednesday night, biologists sifted through the carnage at dump sites along the popular shipping canal near Romeoville. But by late this evening, they had identified just one 22-inch Asian carp, an invasive fish that officials say has the potential to devastate the region’s commercial fishing industry if allowed to enter the Great Lakes. More
(MI) The Associated Press – A government plan to prevent foreign species carried in ship ballast tanks from invading seacoasts, the Great Lakes and inland waterways is riddled with loopholes and would take effect too slowly, environmentalists say. Shipping companies, meanwhile, contend the regulations proposed by the U.S. Coast Guard would make costly and unreasonable demands while adding to a confusing patchwork of federal and state requirements for handling ballast water. The Coast Guard is accepting public comments on the rules through Friday and could make changes before issuing a final version, said Cmdr. Tim Cummins of the 9th District Prevision Division in Cleveland. No deadline has been set for completing the regulations. More
(MI) Petosky News-Review – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently announced $590,190 in federal funding for fish and wildlife restoration projects in the Great Lakes Basin. The projects will be matched by $309,949 in partner contributions and will focus on the rehabilitation of sustainable populations of native fish and wildlife and their habitats. More
(WI) Milwaukee Journal Sentinel – Mayor Larry Nelson has canceled a Dec. 8 public hearing and special Common Council meeting on the city’s proposed switch to Lake Michigan water.
The meeting will be rescheduled in early January to give city staff more time to complete a draft application, officials said. Waukesha intends to seek the approval of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and each of the governors of the seven other Great Lakes states to buy Lake Michigan water. More
(MN) Pioneer Press – Eight Minnesota environmental and conservation organizations are urging the U.S. Coast Guard to adopt tougher ballast-water standards for ships on the Great Lakes to stop the introduction and spread of harmful invasive aquatic species. In a letter to the Coast Guard this week, the groups said the first step of a proposed rule is too weak and takes too long to put into place. They said that it must be effective in killing even small organisms in the ships’ ballast water and that the deadlines should be moved up. More