Asian Carp Threaten Great Lakes; Corbett Calls for National Discussion
Friday, January 29, 2010
January 26, 2010
HARRISBURG
- Attorney General Tom Corbett joined colleagues from several other
Great Lakes states in calling for a national discussion concerning the
environmental and economic threat posed by Asian Carp.
Attorneys General from Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin contacted the White House on Monday, January 25th, formally requesting participation in a proposed state-federal summit to address the Asian Carp crisis.
"As chief legal and law enforcement officers for our states, we all serve on the front-lines of a struggle to protect the ecology and economy of our region," Corbett said. "Any discussion about addressing the threat posed by Asian Carp should include the Attorneys General from all concerned states."
Corbett said that Pennsylvania has joined with Michigan and other states in a federal lawsuit to close shipping locks near Chicago, in an effort to prevent Asian Carp from entering Lake Michigan. The states have argued that the spread of this invasive, non-native species into the Great Lakes could be devastating to native fish and the fishing industry of the entire region.
Corbett explained that the Office of Attorney General is representing Pennsylvania's interests in the Asian Carp case because it is directly linked to legal actions dating to the early 1900's regarding the waters of the Great Lakes, including a 1967 decree by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Attorney General's Office represented the Commonwealth's interests in those original cases and has been involved in reviewing related legal matters since that time.
Additional information about the threat posed by Asian Carp, along with the multi-state effort to address this issue, is available at www.stopasiancarp.com
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