"we’re not sure how much study needs to be done ..............our state is dumbfounded........"
That's painfully obvious given the content of the editorial.
This is sweet - one paper printing another paper's editorial about a topic neither obviously knows anything about.
Maybe the Vindicator and the Huron Daily Tribune should get together and maybe they could come up with enough brain matter between them to figure it out.
There are many valid reasons why the study will take until 2015 and why the study should not be cut short. If the editorial boards of these papers had any inclination to study the issue, do a little investigative reporting, and honestly report the facts, rather than rely on politicians running for office for their information, they would know why a study of this magnitude will not be completed until 2015.
This is neither responsible reporting or an informed editorial. It is simply pandering on behalf of a hand full of politicians who have been deceiving the public for years regarding this issue.
The Huron Daily Tribune and the Vindicator should be ashamed of themselves.
I’m not sure what “trickery” the editorial is referencing. However it is obvious the writer is either ignorant of the facts or is intentionally misleading the public.
To imply Asian Carp would threaten the livelihood of 35 million people and contaminate the drinking water of the Great Lakes or cause a collapse of the fishery is pure CarpolaCr@pola.
Two weeks ago it was reported Asian Carp have had NO effect on fish populations In the Illinois River. In fact, last year produced an explosion of Sauger populations at "Carp Central" in the Illinois River. In addition, Asian Carp minnows were found in the stomachs of Illinois River Walleye indicating they are a food source for sport fish. This is contrary to what Senator Brown and the Vindicator would want us to believe however, fish surveys don't lie. Today it was reported that Ohio is going to stock Lake Erie with Sauger in an attempt to revive Sauger populations. Evidently the Illinois River with Asian Carp has a healthier fish habitat than Lake Erie!
Illinois is not the only state opposing physical barriers in Chicago. Indiana also opposes that strategy as it would destroy the supply line of commodities to steel mills and refineries in northern Indiana who supply materials to industries in Ohio and throughout the Great Lakes states. Yes, that strategy would hurt Ohio.
The Army Corp study will be completed by 2015 or earlier. Cutting short the study will only move the time table up 18 months. Cutting short the study will also deprive us of vital information as to how best to halt Asian Carp migration, not only through Chicago. but also down the Maumee River from Indiana and into Lake Erie. In the meantime, the electric barriers in Chicago will stop Asian Carp from migrating into Lake Michigan.
The strategy of severing Chicago’s waterways endorsed by the Great Lakes Commission would cost $4 billion-$9 billion for infrastructure and the total infrastructure, economic and environmental costs would be in the 10s of billions of dollars. It would also destroy a strategic waterway that would cost $11 billion dollars to construct today. and, pollute Lake Michigan with mercury and other toxic chemicals that would be a REAL threat to the fishery and drinking water in the Great Lakes. The Commission also ignores the fact that Asian Carp have been found in lakes and rivers throughout the Midwest that are completely isolated by dams, land bridges and sealed locks. In short, building a dam in Chicago will not solve the problem.
The Army Corps study will address all these issues to find the BEST way of addressing the Asian Carp issue and should not be cut short. The Stop Asian Carp Act is simply bad legislation motivated by “petty politics” that will stand in the way of finding an affordable, effective and feasible solution to the Asian Carp issue.
By sponsoring the Stop Asian Carp Act Senator Brown has become part of the Asian Carp problem rather than part of the solution.
Senators Brown and Portman should not be duped by Senator Stabenow's political pandering in Michigan. They should vote against the amendment.
The folks in Illinois and the Army Corps know exactly what they are doing and they are doing the right thing. Ironically the folks in Minnesota are now looking to Illinois for guidance. Unfortunately for them it's too late now.
Let the Army Corps finish the complete study as planned. A recent published study has shown the electric barrier in Chicago is is 100% effective in stopping Asian Carp of all sizes - those fish are not going anywhere before 2015.
If the National Wildlife Federation and our senators want to do some real good they might want to talk to the folks in Chicago about how to keep the Asian Carp from swimming down the Maumee River into Lake Erie. That will be the next example of a physical barrier that didn't work.
It's time for the press, the National Wildlife Federation, and politicians to stop misleading the public and supporting the myth that severing Chicago's waterways will stop Asian Carp migration.
Asian carp are found in lakes throughout the Midwest that are already isolated by permanent natural and man made barriers from rivers containing Asian Carp.
This week the Minnesota DNR found evidence of Asian Carp above the Coon Rapids Dam on the Mississippi River. This is a substantial permanent barrier with no locks that would enable Asian Carp to swim past the dam. The dam was thought to be an effective barrier against Asian Carp until this week.
Scientists at the University of Minnesota who have studied the carp have also released a statement this week stating that permanent physical barriers are not the solution to stopping Asian Carp and other invasive species from migrating.
It is one thing for politicians and special interest groups to mislead the public to further their own political agendas. It's quite another thing for the press to ignore the facts and propagate those same myths to serve whatever political agendas or bias they may hold.
It is time to face reality - Chicago, the State of Illinois, and the Army Corps have developed and brought on line an electric barrier that has proven to be just as effective as any permanent physical barrier would be in stopping the migration of Asian Carp and there is no justification for cutting short and abbreviating a study that will shed true light on all aspects of the Asian Carp issue.
The CarpAgeddon crowd needs to understand the purpose of the $25 million study is to find the best way to stop the Carp migration - not the best way to sever a canal. After seeing Zebra Mussels cross the Rocky Mountains and Asian carp finding their way into hydrologically separated lakes and past several sealed locks on the Hennepin Canal, we know that closing the locks or hydrological separation will be no more effective than the electric barriers currently in place.
Finding the best way must weigh the costs against the threat. The Army Corps must define the initial infrastructure costs of severing the canals which would include the costs of barriers, reengineering the Chicago sewer and drainage systems, and constructing new infrastructures to move vast amounts of commodities and, in some cases, the factories that use them.
In addition to those staggering initial costs, the added perpetual costs of moving those commodities and finished goods to hundreds of Ohio and Midwest industries by a less efficient supply chain must be factored into the analysis. Additional costs of accommodating the passage of some 8,000 pleasure boats that rely on the Chicago Waterways for passage between Lake Michigan, the Chicago Waterways, and the Illinois River must also be considered.
On the other side of the scale there is a large body of evidence, including scientific studies and the opinions of respected marine biologists from Ohio and Michigan universities, which show the Asian Carp pose no significant threat to the Great Lakes.
The truth is we can study two years or five years and in the end the conclusion will be what we already know now - the costs of severing the canals will far outweigh the threat and the best way to keep Asian Carp out of the Great Lakes will be to continue to develop passive barriers and other biological solutions. If we don't pursue and develop that technology in Chicago, we may end up with no alternative to sealing off the Maumee River in Toledo once the carp in the Wabash River find their way past that fence in Indiana.
The carp grandstanding politicians and the CarpAggedon crowd know this as well. That’s why they don’t want to bother with these studies. It's not the time it takes that scares them, it's the facts that the studies will bear.
Closing Chicago's locks or severing the canals will be just as much a non starter when the study is finished as it is today or, as it was two weeks ago in federal court. So let's save 5 years and $25 million and start putting those resources into more practical and sensible solutions today.
Unfortunately, all these politicians are battling the Asian Carp on the wrong front.
After nearly 10 months of extensive electro-fishing, netting, and poisoning in Chicago's waterways only one Asian Carp has been found above the electric barriers. That is good news and hardly a cause for panic and is certainly evidence that the electric barriers in Chicago are working.
In addition, a published in depth independent scientific study commissioned by the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration has concluded that Asian Carp cannot survive or colonize in the open waters of the Great Lakes due to insufficient plankton for food:
The study does indicate that there are some isolated wetlands in Lake Erie that MAY have sufficient plankton to support Asian Carp, however, the study also concludes that the Carp could not survive a migration from Chicago to Lake Erie.
It is also known that the Carp cannot reproduce in the Great Lakes and separating Chicago's waterways isn't an effective solution. In fact, more Asian Carp have been found in lakes in Illinois already separated from the waterways than have been found in the waterways above the electric barrier. In addition, all the 18 month study is going to prove is that ecological separation will prove to be too costly and impractical to implement. It will also result in toxic surface water runoff from Chicago polluting Lake Michigan.
That brings us to the real Asian Carp threat - the Maumee River. Due to flooding concerns in Fort Wayne, Indiana will install only a chain link fence between the Maumee and Wabash River tributaries containing a breeding population of Asian Carp. That chain link fence isn't going to stop a Carp migration into the Maumee and down the river to Toledo and Lake Erie.
Governor Strickland, AG Cordray, Rep. LaTourette and Senators Brown and Voinovich are all just Carp Grandstanding. Same goes for AG Van Hollen in Wisconsin. The truth is that there is no Asian Carp threat from Chicago's waterways but there is a significant threat from the Maumee River. Yet these politicians, and particularly those from Ohio, are ignoring the Maumee threat.
Why, because they don't have a solution that fits their political agenda and, for that reason alone, they will compromise Lake Erie's fisheries!
It will only be a matter of time before Asian Carp in the Maumee are waving their flippers as they pass Toledo on their way to those wetlands in Lake Erie. The longer OHIO delays to deal seriously with this potential disaster, the greater the likelihood for damage to Lake Erie.
Illinois is handling their Carp issue just fine while Ohio is doing nothing except backing frivolous law suits and studies going nowhere.
So, let's hear from Strickland, Cordray, and the rest - what's your plan in OHIO to save the Great Lakes?
"A group of Great Lakes congressmen — none from Chicago — are backing a bill introduced Wednesday to close waterways linking the Mississippi River basin and the Great Lakes. It has already come under fire from the Illinois chamber of Commerce and others who say it is too early for such a response.
"Better too early than too late.
"To be sure, there are other possible ways for the carp to get into the lake, primarily during floods that create temporary access between tributaries to the Mississippi and tributaries to one of the lakes. But no one is suggesting that the only thing that needs to be done is to close the Chicago area locks."
Yes, and now we have discovered that the Maumee River shares a water shed with the carp infested Wabash River and it is only a matter of time before the Asian Carp will make their way towards Toledo!
The Maumee River must be sealed off and filled in at its entrance to Lake Erie. We sure don't want to wait too long like we did in Chicago - best to do it now and avoid destroying the Great Lakes!. Remember, we need decisive and coordinated action Now and it's "Better too early than too late"!
Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown is already supporting legislation aimed at severing such connections that would lead to Asian Carp moving between the Mississippi and Great Lakes basins so I'm sure he will support sealing off the Maumee as well.
Sure, it will deny boaters, fishermen, and commercial craft access to and from the Maumee River and Lake Erie and cause economic hardship and flooding in Toledo. But who cares. If it's OK to "inconvenience" millions of people and businesses in Chicago it is certainly OK to inconvenience a few hundred thousand in Ohio.
As you said,"The window of opportunity for protecting the largest body of fresh water in the world is closing."
Go after the Asian carp
"we’re not sure how much study needs to be done ..............our state is dumbfounded........"
That's painfully obvious given the content of the editorial.
This is sweet - one paper printing another paper's editorial about a topic neither obviously knows anything about.
Maybe the Vindicator and the Huron Daily Tribune should get together and maybe they could come up with enough brain matter between them to figure it out.
There are many valid reasons why the study will take until 2015 and why the study should not be cut short. If the editorial boards of these papers had any inclination to study the issue, do a little investigative reporting, and honestly report the facts, rather than rely on politicians running for office for their information, they would know why a study of this magnitude will not be completed until 2015.
This is neither responsible reporting or an informed editorial. It is simply pandering on behalf of a hand full of politicians who have been deceiving the public for years regarding this issue.
The Huron Daily Tribune and the Vindicator should be ashamed of themselves.
May 1, 2012 at 3:07 p.m. permalink suggest removal
Stop all the trickery toward stopping assault of Asian carp
I’m not sure what “trickery” the editorial is referencing. However it is obvious the writer is either ignorant of the facts or is intentionally misleading the public.
To imply Asian Carp would threaten the livelihood of 35 million people and contaminate the drinking water of the Great Lakes or cause a collapse of the fishery is pure CarpolaCr@pola.
Two weeks ago it was reported Asian Carp have had NO effect on fish populations In the Illinois River. In fact, last year produced an explosion of Sauger populations at "Carp Central" in the Illinois River. In addition, Asian Carp minnows were found in the stomachs of Illinois River Walleye indicating they are a food source for sport fish. This is contrary to what Senator Brown and the Vindicator would want us to believe however, fish surveys don't lie. Today it was reported that Ohio is going to stock Lake Erie with Sauger in an attempt to revive Sauger populations. Evidently the Illinois River with Asian Carp has a healthier fish habitat than Lake Erie!
Illinois is not the only state opposing physical barriers in Chicago. Indiana also opposes that strategy as it would destroy the supply line of commodities to steel mills and refineries in northern Indiana who supply materials to industries in Ohio and throughout the Great Lakes states. Yes, that strategy would hurt Ohio.
The Army Corp study will be completed by 2015 or earlier. Cutting short the study will only move the time table up 18 months. Cutting short the study will also deprive us of vital information as to how best to halt Asian Carp migration, not only through Chicago. but also down the Maumee River from Indiana and into Lake Erie. In the meantime, the electric barriers in Chicago will stop Asian Carp from migrating into Lake Michigan.
The strategy of severing Chicago’s waterways endorsed by the Great Lakes Commission would cost $4 billion-$9 billion for infrastructure and the total infrastructure, economic and environmental costs would be in the 10s of billions of dollars. It would also destroy a strategic waterway that would cost $11 billion dollars to construct today. and, pollute Lake Michigan with mercury and other toxic chemicals that would be a REAL threat to the fishery and drinking water in the Great Lakes. The Commission also ignores the fact that Asian Carp have been found in lakes and rivers throughout the Midwest that are completely isolated by dams, land bridges and sealed locks. In short, building a dam in Chicago will not solve the problem.
The Army Corps study will address all these issues to find the BEST way of addressing the Asian Carp issue and should not be cut short. The Stop Asian Carp Act is simply bad legislation motivated by “petty politics” that will stand in the way of finding an affordable, effective and feasible solution to the Asian Carp issue.
By sponsoring the Stop Asian Carp Act Senator Brown has become part of the Asian Carp problem rather than part of the solution.
March 21, 2012 at 6 p.m. permalink suggest removal
Take the carp threat seriously
Senators Brown and Portman should not be duped by Senator Stabenow's political pandering in Michigan. They should vote against the amendment.
The folks in Illinois and the Army Corps know exactly what they are doing and they are doing the right thing. Ironically the folks in Minnesota are now looking to Illinois for guidance. Unfortunately for them it's too late now.
Let the Army Corps finish the complete study as planned. A recent published study has shown the electric barrier in Chicago is is 100% effective in stopping Asian Carp of all sizes - those fish are not going anywhere before 2015.
If the National Wildlife Federation and our senators want to do some real good they might want to talk to the folks in Chicago about how to keep the Asian Carp from swimming down the Maumee River into Lake Erie. That will be the next example of a physical barrier that didn't work.
December 11, 2011 at 3:14 a.m. permalink suggest removal
Take the carp threat seriously
It's time for the press, the National Wildlife Federation, and politicians to stop misleading the public and supporting the myth that severing Chicago's waterways will stop Asian Carp migration.
Asian carp are found in lakes throughout the Midwest that are already isolated by permanent natural and man made barriers from rivers containing Asian Carp.
This week the Minnesota DNR found evidence of Asian Carp above the Coon Rapids Dam on the Mississippi River. This is a substantial permanent barrier with no locks that would enable Asian Carp to swim past the dam. The dam was thought to be an effective barrier against Asian Carp until this week.
Scientists at the University of Minnesota who have studied the carp have also released a statement this week stating that permanent physical barriers are not the solution to stopping Asian Carp and other invasive species from migrating.
It is one thing for politicians and special interest groups to mislead the public to further their own political agendas. It's quite another thing for the press to ignore the facts and propagate those same myths to serve whatever political agendas or bias they may hold.
It is time to face reality - Chicago, the State of Illinois, and the Army Corps have developed and brought on line an electric barrier that has proven to be just as effective as any permanent physical barrier would be in stopping the migration of Asian Carp and there is no justification for cutting short and abbreviating a study that will shed true light on all aspects of the Asian Carp issue.
December 11, 2011 at 1:26 a.m. permalink suggest removal
New Asian carp study could delay action until it’s too late
The CarpAgeddon crowd needs to understand the purpose of the $25 million study is to find the best way to stop the Carp migration - not the best way to sever a canal. After seeing Zebra Mussels cross the Rocky Mountains and Asian carp finding their way into hydrologically separated lakes and past several sealed locks on the Hennepin Canal, we know that closing the locks or hydrological separation will be no more effective than the electric barriers currently in place.
Finding the best way must weigh the costs against the threat. The Army Corps must define the initial infrastructure costs of severing the canals which would include the costs of barriers, reengineering the Chicago sewer and drainage systems, and constructing new infrastructures to move vast amounts of commodities and, in some cases, the factories that use them.
In addition to those staggering initial costs, the added perpetual costs of moving those commodities and finished goods to hundreds of Ohio and Midwest industries by a less efficient supply chain must be factored into the analysis. Additional costs of accommodating the passage of some 8,000 pleasure boats that rely on the Chicago Waterways for passage between Lake Michigan, the Chicago Waterways, and the Illinois River must also be considered.
On the other side of the scale there is a large body of evidence, including scientific studies and the opinions of respected marine biologists from Ohio and Michigan universities, which show the Asian Carp pose no significant threat to the Great Lakes.
The truth is we can study two years or five years and in the end the conclusion will be what we already know now - the costs of severing the canals will far outweigh the threat and the best way to keep Asian Carp out of the Great Lakes will be to continue to develop passive barriers and other biological solutions. If we don't pursue and develop that technology in Chicago, we may end up with no alternative to sealing off the Maumee River in Toledo once the carp in the Wabash River find their way past that fence in Indiana.
The carp grandstanding politicians and the CarpAggedon crowd know this as well. That’s why they don’t want to bother with these studies. It's not the time it takes that scares them, it's the facts that the studies will bear.
Closing Chicago's locks or severing the canals will be just as much a non starter when the study is finished as it is today or, as it was two weeks ago in federal court. So let's save 5 years and $25 million and start putting those resources into more practical and sensible solutions today.
December 20, 2010 at 4:13 a.m. permalink suggest removal
Seize opportunity to net results in reining in deadly Asian carp
Unfortunately, all these politicians are battling the Asian Carp on the wrong front.
After nearly 10 months of extensive electro-fishing, netting, and poisoning in Chicago's waterways only one Asian Carp has been found above the electric barriers. That is good news and hardly a cause for panic and is certainly evidence that the electric barriers in Chicago are working.
In addition, a published in depth independent scientific study commissioned by the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration has concluded that Asian Carp cannot survive or colonize in the open waters of the Great Lakes due to insufficient plankton for food:
http://www.iisgcp.org/research/ais/hi...
The study does indicate that there are some isolated wetlands in Lake Erie that MAY have sufficient plankton to support Asian Carp, however, the study also concludes that the Carp could not survive a migration from Chicago to Lake Erie.
It is also known that the Carp cannot reproduce in the Great Lakes and separating Chicago's waterways isn't an effective solution. In fact, more Asian Carp have been found in lakes in Illinois already separated from the waterways than have been found in the waterways above the electric barrier. In addition, all the 18 month study is going to prove is that ecological separation will prove to be too costly and impractical to implement. It will also result in toxic surface water runoff from Chicago polluting Lake Michigan.
That brings us to the real Asian Carp threat - the Maumee River. Due to flooding concerns in Fort Wayne, Indiana will install only a chain link fence between the Maumee and Wabash River tributaries containing a breeding population of Asian Carp. That chain link fence isn't going to stop a Carp migration into the Maumee and down the river to Toledo and Lake Erie.
Governor Strickland, AG Cordray, Rep. LaTourette and Senators Brown and Voinovich are all just Carp Grandstanding. Same goes for AG Van Hollen in Wisconsin. The truth is that there is no Asian Carp threat from Chicago's waterways but there is a significant threat from the Maumee River. Yet these politicians, and particularly those from Ohio, are ignoring the Maumee threat.
Why, because they don't have a solution that fits their political agenda and, for that reason alone, they will compromise Lake Erie's fisheries!
It will only be a matter of time before Asian Carp in the Maumee are waving their flippers as they pass Toledo on their way to those wetlands in Lake Erie. The longer OHIO delays to deal seriously with this potential disaster, the greater the likelihood for damage to Lake Erie.
Illinois is handling their Carp issue just fine while Ohio is doing nothing except backing frivolous law suits and studies going nowhere.
So, let's hear from Strickland, Cordray, and the rest - what's your plan in OHIO to save the Great Lakes?
Great Lakes Fisherman
August 4, 2010 at 2:17 p.m. permalink suggest removal
Great Lakes states interests are bigger than Chicago
"A group of Great Lakes congressmen — none from Chicago — are backing a bill introduced Wednesday to close waterways linking the Mississippi River basin and the Great Lakes. It has already come under fire from the Illinois chamber of Commerce and others who say it is too early for such a response.
"Better too early than too late.
"To be sure, there are other possible ways for the carp to get into the lake, primarily during floods that create temporary access between tributaries to the Mississippi and tributaries to one of the lakes. But no one is suggesting that the only thing that needs to be done is to close the Chicago area locks."
Yes, and now we have discovered that the Maumee River shares a water shed with the carp infested Wabash River and it is only a matter of time before the Asian Carp will make their way towards Toledo!
The Maumee River must be sealed off and filled in at its entrance to Lake Erie. We sure don't want to wait too long like we did in Chicago - best to do it now and avoid destroying the Great Lakes!. Remember, we need decisive and coordinated action Now and it's "Better too early than too late"!
Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown is already supporting legislation aimed at severing such connections that would lead to Asian Carp moving between the Mississippi and Great Lakes basins so I'm sure he will support sealing off the Maumee as well.
Sure, it will deny boaters, fishermen, and commercial craft access to and from the Maumee River and Lake Erie and cause economic hardship and flooding in Toledo. But who cares. If it's OK to "inconvenience" millions of people and businesses in Chicago it is certainly OK to inconvenience a few hundred thousand in Ohio.
As you said,"The window of opportunity for protecting the largest body of fresh water in the world is closing."
July 2, 2010 at 2:47 p.m. permalink suggest removal