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CHICAGO Several recent water samples came back positive for silver carp eDNA above an electrical barrier system near Chicago and environmentalists are concerned the species of Asian carp may have reached the Great Lakes.
Water samples were collected in various locations throughout the Chicago Area Waterway System and results were reported Jan. 5 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
A total of 23 results came back positive for silver carp eDNA, a species of Asian carp, in several locations throughout the waterway system, including six from the North Shore Channel, five from the Chicago River, eight from Lake Calumet and four from Little Calumet River.
The Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council in Petoskey is especially concerned by this latest round of positive results.
An electric barrier system was installed between 2002 and 2011 in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and consists of three electric barriers as well as a demonstration barrier. The barrier system was created to help repel Asian carp, but the Watershed Council is concerned the invasive fish species may be making it through the barrier and into the Great Lakes.
It is absolutely concerning, said Jennifer McKay, policy specialist for Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council. This is not the first time there have been positive results above the barrier and the fact that we continue to see positive hits means the barrier is not working.
McKay acknowledged that these hits do not guarantee a live fish, as the eDNA could have made it to the water by other means, but it is concerning to McKay nonetheless.
Representatives from the Army Corps of Engineers, the organization responsible for overseeing the system, were not immediately available for comment.
McKay referenced a history of positive results near these locations as to why she and the Watershed Council have elevated concerns over this round of samples.
More positive hits means it is more likely there are at least some Asian carp above the barrier and in the Great Lakes system, she said. It certainly raises some red flags. We need to pay more attention, take this seriously and move to a long-term solution.
Several short-term solutions have already been suggested, including additional electric barriers and air cannons within the Chicago Area Waterway System.
McKay said though these solutions may serve their purpose for the short term, a long-term solution must be agreed upon as quickly as possible.
The long-term solution she and the Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council support is a physical separation between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River Basins in the Chicago Area Waterway System.
CHICAGO Several recent water samples came back positive for silver carp eDNA above an electrical barrier system near Chicago and environmentalists are concerned the species of Asian carp may have reached the Great Lakes.
Water samples were collected in various locations throughout the Chicago Area Waterway System and results were reported Jan. 5 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
A total of 23 results came back positive for silver carp eDNA, a species of Asian carp, in several locations throughout the waterway system, including six from the North Shore Channel, five from the Chicago River, eight from Lake Calumet and four from Little Calumet River.
The Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council in Petoskey is especially concerned by this latest round of positive results.
An electric barrier system was installed between 2002 and 2011 in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and consists of three electric barriers as well as a demonstration barrier. The barrier system was created to help repel Asian carp, but the Watershed Council is concerned the invasive fish species may be making it through the barrier and into the Great Lakes.
It is absolutely concerning, said Jennifer McKay, policy specialist for Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council. This is not the first time there have been positive results above the barrier and the fact that we continue to see positive hits means the barrier is not working.
McKay acknowledged that these hits do not guarantee a live fish, as the eDNA could have made it to the water by other means, but it is concerning to McKay nonetheless.
Representatives from the Army Corps of Engineers, the organization responsible for overseeing the system, were not immediately available for comment.
McKay referenced a history of positive results near these locations as to why she and the Watershed Council have elevated concerns over this round of samples.
More positive hits means it is more likely there are at least some Asian carp above the barrier and in the Great Lakes system, she said. It certainly raises some red flags. We need to pay more attention, take this seriously and move to a long-term solution.
Several short-term solutions have already been suggested, including additional electric barriers and air cannons within the Chicago Area Waterway System.
McKay said though these solutions may serve their purpose for the short term, a long-term solution must be agreed upon as quickly as possible.
The long-term solution she and the Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council support is a physical separation between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River Basins in the Chicago Area Waterway System.