On March 31, 2011, 22 Canadian groups, including the Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation, signed a bi-national letter requesting the U.S. government to accelerate and strengthen a study aimed at preventing Asian carp and other invasive species infesting the Mississippi basin from moving into the shared international waters of the Great Lakes.

A total of 108 groups from Louisiana to Ontario - representing environmental, conservation, fishing and labour interests - signed the letter.

“This issue has brought together conservation groups from both sides of the border to advance this common objective” noted Geoff Peach, Coastal Resources Manager for the Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation.  Each group shares an interest of preventing ecological and economic harm caused by aquatic invasive species.

The signed letter asked the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to listen to concerns from the Canadian stakeholders and produce implementable recommendations within 18 months for preventing the northern migration of Asian carp into the Great Lakes water system.

In 2007, the U.S. Congress authorized a study by the Corps titled the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) to prevent the two-way transfer of aquatic invasive species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basin. Since then, the Corps has broadened its GLMRIS study from prevention to “Risk Reduction” which is not what congress authorized them to do.

The groups that signed this bi-national letter believe the Corps is moving too slow and the only way to fully prevent the invasive species from entering the Great Lakes is through hydrological separation of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basin waters. If water does not flow between the two watersheds, invasives will not be able to migrate.

The group’s goal is to ensure that the Corps 2007 mandate is not misinterpreted, and that the agency makes recommendations on how to separate the once-naturally separate Great Lakes and Mississippi River watersheds within 18 months rather than the 2015 deadline the Corps is giving. “The stakes are large for both countries.  There’s no time left for political games. The ecology of the lakes is really at stake here” Peach said.

Asian carp invasion not only poses a threat to Americans but is also threatens the health and welfare of Canadians. Approximately forty per cent of Great Lakes shoreline lies within Ontario boundaries.

A risk assessment conducted by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans concluded that if Asian carp successfully colonize in the Great Lakes there is a high probability that they will spread across the Great Lakes basin and even through the prairie provinces. This will create some serious adverse impacts on Ontario’s recreational and commercial fisheries valuing approximately $400 million per year.

“On the bright side, the Province of Ontario has taken an active stand in this issue, taking legal action against the state of Illinois to force the closure of the canal, charging companies importing the fish coming into Ontario and, recently, holding emergency planning exercises in the event that the fish are detected in Canadian Waters.  Concerned citizens should continue to make their voices heard to their politicians to make sure the issue does not fade from their agendas,” said Peach.

For more information on the Asian Carp, contact the Coastal Centre at (519) 955-6269 or email  coastalcentre@lakehuron.on.ca.