Michigan affirms offer to share Asian carp project costs

LANSING, Mich. – Michigan says it remains willing to contribute $8 million toward initial stages of a project to prevent Asian carp from reaching the Great Lakes.

Department of Natural Resources Director Dan Eichinger affirmed the commitment Tuesday in a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The funding would pay for preconstruction, engineering and design of a planned barrier system at the Brandon Road Lock and Dam near Joliet, Illinois.

The location is a choke point where bighead, silver and black carp could be blocked from migrating to Lake Michigan through Chicago-area waterways.

Congress has been asked to cover most of the project’s $778 million cost.

Officials say the urgency was underscored by a recent announcement that 76 water samples taken beyond Brandon Road had tested positive for Asian carp DNA.