An electric barrier designed to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes will be strengthened this fall in an effort to ensure that very small fish do not slip through, the Army Corps of Engineers said Friday.
Although federal officials stressed that the current barrier is effective, the move comes after lab tests indicated that very small Asian carp may not be repelled, Maj. Gen. John Peabody said during a conference call with reporters.
The newly bolstered barrier is not expected to make the barrier any more dangerous for people, according to the Corps.
The Corps also released Friday the results of an independent external review that found that Asian carp environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling and testing was sound for detecting silver and bighead carp DNA.
The panel determined, however, that eDNA technology does not confirm the physical presence of live fish.
Earlier this summer, the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee swept Lake Calumet and surrounding areas for Asian carp after eDNA turned up in three consecutive rounds of sampling. No Asian carp were found.
A relatively small number of adult Asian carp have been located about 40 to 45 miles south of the electric barriers, which are near Romeoville, officials said. Young Asian carp have been found more than 100 miles downstream from the barriers, they said. But the possibility that small fish could slip through has led to greater efforts this year to track eggs, larvae and young carp.
Native to China and with no known predators in the U.S., Asian carp have overwhelmed native fish populations, creating worries that they could jeopardize the Great Lakes’ commercial and recreational fishing industry, worth an estimated $7 billion annually, if they find their way into the system.
