Protecting the Great Lakes means more than just dealing with the Asian Carp
I agree with the general premise of an editorial in today’s Blade, Protect the Great Lakes. While I also support the the Asian Carp Prevention and Control Act sponsored by Senators Voinovich and Levin because I know how invasive and potentially dangerous these Asian Carps are…I recommend the below video for those not aware of the problems known for years, the Asian Carp were brought in by catfish farmers to help them keep the ponds clean and the flood in 1993 allowed them to escape into the Mississippi. The video (part two) focuses on the electrical fence that is supposed to keep the Asian Carp out of the Great Lakes.
Part one:
Part two:
The Blade is correct in pointing out the other problems that have been allowed to exist within the Great Lakes due to ship’s using and releasing water from their ballast tanks, Zebra mussels and Round Gobies as well as VHS — viral hemorrhagic septicemia, which recently a lawsuit was thrown out of court, that attempted to prevent ships from using ballast that was not disinfected.
More has to be done to stem the tide of damage that has already been done, which the only realistic way to deal with that is to address the ballast water issue, while the Coast Guard says the program they began in the1990’s, a ballast management program has been successful, that’s hard to argue. As this Chicago Tribune story points out:
It would be impossible to eradicate invasive species from the Great Lakes, so the goal now is to prevent new exotic species from entering and to stop existing invaders from spreading. The stakes are high: One study released last year put the cost of invasive species to the Great Lakes states at $200 million a year, and there are some invaders — such as a deadly fish virus known as VHS — have yet to hit Lake Superior.
There is no federal standard when it comes to ballast water, it’s critical if Great Lakes safety is truly to happen that be done…
The $200 million is tax payer money. If ships are forced to sterilize their ballasts, then it will cost corporations money and we can’t have that can we?
July 15th, 2009 at 2:55 pmYes, we can
July 15th, 2009 at 2:57 pm