Senate Committee Passes Water Bill with Great Lakes, Invasive Carp Provisions

Healing Our Waters - Great Lakes Coalition press release

Via Healing Our Waters - Great Lakes Coalition

The U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee advanced the Water Resources Development Act of 2022, a key step in ensuring Congress passes this critical biennial water infrastructure legislation. The bill contains provisions that support Great Lakes restoration priorities, such as preventing the spread of invasive carp into the lakes and helping communities prepare for and adapt to climate change. The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition is supporting several provisions in the bill.

“This bill will help local communities restore and protect the Great Lakes—and will be essential as the region tries to adjust to the increasing impacts of climate change,” said Laura Rubin, director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition. “We support investments in the bill that will help communities prepare for, and adapt to, climate impacts stemming from intense storms and flooding. We also applaud the focus on preventing invasive carp from entering the Great Lakes.”

The Water Resources Development Act, a federal bill that funds water infrastructure projects undertaken by the U.S. Army Crops of Engineers, contains funding to prevent the spread of invasive carp into the Great Lakes, by funding the construction of a lock and dam to halt the advance of the non-native species. The legislation, if passed, would call for the federal government to pay for 90% of the cost. The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition is urging Congress to amend the bill so that the federal government covers the full cost of the project.

You can find the Coalition’s full comments to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee in support of these key Great Lakes provisions on its website.