War on Asian carp gets new commander

The Obama administration has appointed its point man in the fight to prevent Asian carp from gaining a foothold in the Great Lakes.

John Goss, an environmental activist and former state official from Indiana, was appointed Wednesday to oversee government efforts to halt the advance of bighead and silver carp, which are on the verge of invading Lake Michigan through Chicago-area waterways.

Scientists say if the voracious carp become established in the lakes, they could damage the food chain and a $7-billion US regional fishing industry.

Goss led the National Wildlife Federation's Indiana affiliate for four years, directed the state's Department of Natural Resources and was vice-chairman of the Great Lakes Commission.

$78.5M federal defence plan

Goss will be the primary adviser on the carp problem, reporting to the head of the White House Council on Environmental Quality.

He will carry out a $78.5= million federal effort to control the carp announced in February.

The plan calls for a series of technological and infrastructure upgrades, such as strengthening an electronic barrier on the man-made waterway linking Lake Michigan to the Illinois River.

Critics say the plan lacks clear goals and timetables and is weak because it does not endorse closing navigational locks and gates in Chicago that could give the carp an opening to the lake -- an issue that has sharply divided the region.

Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota and Pennsylvania have filed a federal lawsuit seeking to shut down the locks and permanently sever the link between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River watersheds.

At a hearing on the case Wednesday in Chicago, a top official with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers testified that electrical barriers are the agency's best defence against the Asian carp, but aren't perfect.