Asian
Carp Barrier Failure and

2010
Asian Carp Control Strategy 

Released; 2010

By:
Thomas Marks, NY Director

Great Lakes Sport Fishing Council

716-997-6919 

I can honestly say,
“I told you so.” It is painful to be right in this instance
because it means that the Asian carp infesting the Illinois
River and Chicago area waterway system have invaded Lake
Michigan. In January the release of eDNA test results from
samples taken in Lake Michigan confirms my worst fears that
Asian carp are in Lake Michigan. The current situation
changes all the dynamics for any future Asian Carp Control
Strategy Plans. There may be a very small window to halt any
further invasion of Lake Michigan by the Asian Carp; this is
dependent upon how many carp have reached Lake Michigan. The
time for technological barriers in the Chicago Sanitary and
Ship Canal and Cal-Sag Channel have past; more aggressive
measures must be executed. Time has all but run out, we are
in the last hours for any control measures, which can
succeed at protecting Lake Michigan and the remaining Great
Lakes.

What I have been
saying for almost the past ten years has been that the
efforts to prevent the Asian carp from reaching Lake
Michigan have been inadequate. The Army Corps of Engineers
poorly executed a plan that had some potential to protect
Lake Michigan. The Corps operated with a lack of urgency or
intensity on this critical plan when time was not on our
side. Poor planning led to the unsatisfactory site selection
and the resulting problems. The electric barrier was placed
in a less than suitable location to stop Asian carp. The
site for the barrier is prone to flooding from the Des
Plaines River, which could allow carp to infest areas above
the barrier. The permanent electric barrier known as Barrier
IIA and Barrier IIB was supposed to cost $9.1 million to be
built and be operational in 2005. Delays in construction due
to problems with the location of Barrier IIA of the
Permanent Electric Barrier pushed the cost much higher, to
be completed the price tag has risen to over $16 million.
The Barrier IIA portion of the permanent electric barrier
was “completed” in April of 2006, however it was not
operational until April 2009 that is four years behind
schedule. The Barrier IIA, only half of the permanent
barrier promised to be built, was allowed to operate
initially at only1 volt, a fraction of its rated capability.
Safety issues surrounding sparking between a coal loading
dock downstream and barges extending into the electric field
required an “electricity absorbing” mat to be installed. If
Asian carp were detected near the barrier an emergency plan
was formulated to increase the power to 2 volts, still only
half of its capability and which will be ineffective at
repelling all sizes of carp, which its original design was
capable of repelling. The power was increased to 2 volts in
July of 2009.

I will not dwell on
the failures of the Electric Barrier Plan because it is
painfully obvious by the presence of Asian carp in Lake
Michigan that it has failed. The Army Corps of Engineers and
others responsible became fixated on the electric barrier
and not on the objective to stop the advance of the Asian
carp. They did not carry out the plans that were in place.
It was a multi-tired plan, which included continuous
monitoring, ecological barriers and ultimately hydrological
separation of the two ecosystems.

When spawning
populations became established in the Mississippi and
Illinois Rivers Asian carp expanded their range at almost 20
miles a year but when they reached the Lockport lock the
advance stopped. Nobody responsible for Asian Carp control
asked why would the carp stop at the lock when they had
successfully passed locks further south in the system.
Unfortunately the Army Corps of Engineers, Illinois DNR and
others watching the carp did not understand that the carp
did not stop expanding their range. It was the inadequacy of
the survey methods being used to detect the carp in the
canal. I had expressed this in 2005 that the methods used,
electro-fishing, and nets were not suited for use in the
Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. At that time the carp were
about 40 miles from Lake Michigan I had predicted that they
would be at the Lake (Michigan) sometime in 2007. It is
quite possible the Asian carp arrived as I predicted. In the
fall of 2008 a small Lake in Chicago was rotenoned by the
Illinois DNR because Asian carp were seen there. It is quite
possible that these carp could have arrived through a
connection to Lake Michigan, its only connection to possibly
carp infested waters.

In the latter half of
2009, DNA testing was begun to determine where Asian carp
had reached. Using eDNA (environmental DNA) it is possible
to detect Asian carp where conventional methods are
ineffective and at lower numbers. It is the best early
warning detection method currently available. If carp are
present it is possible to detect them by isolating DNA from
“environmental” samples. Quickly we learned that Asian carp
were in the vicinity of the electric barrier. Testing
further upstream showed there were carp past the barrier.
Finally in January 2010 it was determined that Asian carp
were indeed in Lake Michigan. The environmental DNA tests
could only determine that the carp are present, not how many
carp, so we do not know if there are sufficient numbers for
a spawning population in Lake Michigan. I have received
anecdotal evidence that Asian carp have been in Lake
Michigan since late 2007. I have recently received reports
that Asian carp have been seen in Muskegon Harbor some 120
miles north of Chicago. These reports are unconfirmed by
actual fish capture or positive eDNA test results. If the
reports I have received are correct then the battle to save
the Great Lakes from Asian carp is over. Even small numbers
of Asian carp are not good. Biological pollution, which is
what Asian carp are, requires only a small initial
“contamination” to become a serious problem. Biological
pollution is living organisms, which can reproduce; it may
take years to get numbers high enough to do damage to the
ecosystem but when they do it is way too late for
countermeasures. A perfect example is what has happened in
the Illinois River with Asian carp, or the Great Lakes with
quagga mussels, or round gobies, or spiney water fleas, or
the other 180 invasive species identified so far in our
Great Lakes.

The Army Corps of
Engineers, EPA, Illinois DNR, US Fish and Wildlife and US
Coast Guard are all in denial that their electric barrier
has failed to keep the carp from Lake Michigan. While using
eDNA testing to detect carp maybe a new use, it is not new
in forensic science to detect DNA of victims, perpetrators
of crimes and to be used to determine the fate of criminals
in our courts. The DNA testing in the environment is
essentially the same as the testing being conducted by
forensic scientists for our court system. Therefore, to
question the validity is pure nonsense and denial by the
Army Corps of Engineers, EPA, US Fish and Wildlife and all
the opponents to hydrological separation of the Mississippi
and Great Lakes ecosystems. Despite the Army Corps, EPA, and
US Fish and Wildlife’s public skepticism of eDNA test
results; I know they have no doubts that it is valid,
effective and can be trusted. The emergency response and use
of rotenone below the electric barrier was because of the
positive eDNA test results in the vicinity of and above the
electric barrier. This action would have been extreme
overkill if the Asian carp were below the Lockport Lock as
these agencies had publicly indicated just a few months
prior.

I
started by saying that the presence of Asian carp has
changed entirely the dynamic for protecting the Great Lakes
from this invasive species. The Asian Carp Control Strategy
Framework presented by the Obama administration was obsolete
the day it was printed. The Strategy has no sense of
urgency; it sustains carrying on a failed plan to address
the Asian carp invasion. It lacks action by restudying
control measures that have already been studied to death.
The most glaring problem with Administration’s Asian Carp
Control Strategy Framework is that it denies that these carp
are in Lake Michigan. If there is any hope for the Great
Lakes it is if there is only a small number of carp in Lake
Michigan. If this proves to be correct we may have a chance
to remove them before they can reproduce. The time for
studies of control measures is past; we already know what to
do. More studies will only exasperate the situation and
cause more delays and insure the Asian carp’s successful
invasion of all our Great Lakes.

It is hard to outline
a plan because as the countermeasures are listed it sets an
imaginary sequence of priorities. In this “fight” there are
no first priorities. Everything on the table and outlined
has to occur now; this is the last chance; there will be no
more opportunities. 2010 will be the year that we either
stopped the Asian carp or the year the Asian carp officially
invaded the Great Lakes.

  The following is
what should be included in any 2010 Asian Carp Control
Strategy to protect the Great Lakes from this invasive
species:

• 
  Eliminate all the Asian carp present in the southern
  reaches of Lake Michigan. Their range in Lake Michigan
  has to be determined exactly leaving no hidden
  populations to reproduce.
  
• 
  All potential pathways for more Asian carp reaching Lake
  Michigan need to be cut off, even if this means closing
  and tightening locks, (the Chicago Lock, O’Brien Lock,
  and any storm overflows) it has to be done now. Close
  all culverts and sluices that Asian carp could use to
  reach Lake Michigan.
  
• 
  Eradicate the Asian carp in the Chicago area waterways
  between Lake Michigan and the permanent electric barrier
  to re-establish the buffer zone between the leading edge
  of the Asian carp population and Lake Michigan.
  
• 
  Use intensive eDNA
  testing to monitor for the presence of Asian Carp in the
  Chicago area waterways and Lake Michigan. Use emergency
  rapid responses to any positive tests in the buffer zone
  or in Lake Michigan. Emergency responses should utilize
  any and all effective control measures including
  rotenone, trap nets, gill nets, or trawl nets, and other
  methods.
  
• 
  Build hydrological
  separation barriers in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship
  Canal (CSSC) and Cal-Sag Channel. Closing locks and
  sluices is not a permanent solution it interferes with
  commerce; it is only an emergency measure until
  hydrological separation can be built. The Hydrological
  barrier on the CSSC has to be built near the point of
  the natural ecosystem separation. This barrier should be
  in the vicinity of South Western Ave to South California
  Ave. This will eliminate the flooding issues in regards
  to the Des Plaines River and any berms that the Army
  Corps has suggested that were necessary. The
  hydrological separation on the Cal. Sag should be in the
  vicinity of South La Grange Road to the South Harlem
  Road or at least one-mile above the junction of the
  Cal-Sag and CSSC but below any of the tributary rivers
  to the Cal-Sag. All hydrological separations need to
  enable the continuation of barge and boat traffic.
  Lifting barges over these barriers is easy and one
  example is on the Trent- Severn Waterway at Lock 41.
  There are other methods as well that would be easy to
  build. Temporary hydrological barriers should be put in
  place until the permanent structures can be built. 
• 
  Immediately halt any ballast water discharges by Lake
  Freighters or other ships coming from Lake Michigan in
  any of the other Great Lakes and their tributaries. The
  potential for accelerating the spread of Asian carp
  through the transfer of eggs or young fry is a real
  danger. Dr. David Jude has said that the carp eggs are
  “bullet proof” and could survive the journey in ballast
  tanks.  

The plan I have
outlined has to be initiated and carried out as soon as
possible to be effective. I will repeat again that we have
no time the Asian carp are in Lake Michigan; the mission to
stop them from reaching the Great Lakes has failed. We are
now in uncharted territory nothing has ever been attempted
like this before to undo an invasion of an ecosystem. All
efforts have to be carried out aggressively and with
determination. I have focussed on the ecological disaster
but if the Asian carp are not pushed back and stopped it
will have severe economic impacts as well. The recreational
boating and fishing industry is valued at over $7.1 billion
a year in the Great Lakes. In a recent New York Times
article it was stated that the invasion of Asian carp would
spell disaster for tourism. It would cause the property
values of vacation homes and tourism businesses to plummet.
If Asian carp effect the economic base of communities around
the Great Lakes their bond ratings would suffer. As
described the Asian carp is not only an environmental
problem it is economic which we can ill afford not to
eradicate from Lake Michigan.   

In summary there is no
room for delay in action. It is environmental and economic
survival for the Great Lakes region that is at stake. The
Asian carp are not pausing to second guess their migration
to northern waters and beyond. We have a lot of resources at
our disposal to carry out this plan. We need to react much
like we have in the past for any natural disaster except
this one is manmade. I believe 2010 will be a year etched in
history, I hope our descendants will be able to praise us
for our actions.