Mayors from Canada and the United States are urging immediate action on the threat of Asian carp at Brandon Road Lock and Dam in the Chicago Area Waterway system.
Comments were submitted by Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative (Cities Initiative), a coalition of more than 100 Canadian and US mayors and municipal leaders that represents over 17 million people and is committed to the long-term protection and restoration of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River.
The comments were submitted to the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on the Great Lakes Mississippi River Interbasin Study – Brandon Road Integrated Feasibility Study and Environmental Impact Statement – Will County, Illinois.
The mayors support the USACE Recommended Plan at Brandon Road as an interim measure to shore up defenses against Asian carp.
“We need a strong defense right now to protect the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River system, our economies, the fishery and ecosystem, recreation, and more from encroaching Asian carp,” said Michelle Morin-Doyle, deputy-mayor of Québec City and chair of the Cities Initiative. “This isn’t the silver bullet solution, but a necessary step as we work to find an effective, permanent solution.”
In their support for the recommended plan, the mayors called for urgent action on the project.
“Interim measures at Brandon Road were needed yesterday,” said Mike Vandersteen, mayor of Sheboygan, Wisconsin and vice-chair of the Cities Initiative. “We urge the USACE, State of Illinois, and Congress to move forward quickly with authorization, appropriation and implementation of the Recommended Plan.”
