WASHINGTON, D.C. —This week, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) joined a bipartisan group of Members of Congress in introducing the Stop Asian Carp Now Act, which will compel to the Trump Administration to release the Brandon Road Study within seven days of the bill’s enactment. The Brandon Road Lock and Dam study will provide important guidance on how best to prevent Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes and is an important hurdle before further action can be taken. 

“Asian carp threaten Lake Erie and the many Ohio industries and jobs that rely on it,” Brown said. “That’s why we need aggressive solutions to stop the influx of Asian carp and other invasive species. It’s important that the Trump Administration release the Brandon Road Study so that we can continue to enact policies that will help protect Lake Erie’s ecosystems as well as Ohio’s economy.” 

Asian carp represent a serious economic and environmental threat to the Great Lakes, and this report is a critical next step in finding and implementing a solution. The report has already been delayed by the Trump Administration from its expected release in February of this year. Once the report is released a public comment period can begin, and further action can be decided in an open and transparent way.

Senate cosponsors include: Sens. Stabenow (D-MI), Peters (D-MI), Baldwin (D-WI), Franken (D-MN) Klobuchar (D-MN), Durbin (D-IL) and Duckworth (D-IL).

House cosponsors include:  Reps. Kaptur (OH-9), Huizenga (MI-02), Joyce (OH-14), Slaughter (NY-25), Nolan (MN-08), Trott (MI-11), Bergman (MI-01), Moolenaar (MI-04), Walberg (MI-07), Kildee (MI-05), Upton (MI-06), Schneider (IL-10), Mike Bishop (MI-08), Dingell (MI-12), Lawrence (MI-14), Walz (MN-01), Quigley (IL-05), Tim Ryan (OH-13), Conyers (MI-13), Moore (WI-04), Gallagher (WI-08), Chris Collins (NY-27), Schakowsky (IL-09), Mitchell (MI-10), Duffy (WI-07), Pocan (WI-02), Levin (MI-09), Fudge (OH-11), Stefanik (NY-21), Latta (OH-05), Amash (MI-03) and Brian Higgins (NY-26).

In 2015, Brown supported the Defending Our Great Lakes Act, to encourage the implementation of more water quality and flood mitigation projects as part of Asian carp prevention efforts. The legislation sought collaboration between the Great Lakes Interagency Task Force (IATF) – a collection of 11 U.S. Cabinet and federal agency heads, led by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) – and state and local flood and water quality agencies, to ensure the implementation of more of these projects.

In May, Brown blasted President Trump’s budget for eliminating the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), a highly successful program that jumpstarted efforts to protect, maintain and restore the integrity of the Great Lakes. The budget also reduces funding for agricultural conservation programs and eliminates the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Sea Grant Program, which funds Ohio State Stone Lab on Lake Erie. Stone Lab plays a critical role in monitoring and protecting Lake Erie.

Last Congress, Brown cosponsored the Great Lakes Ecological and Economic Protection Act of 2015 (GLEEPA) – a bill that would reauthorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and codify the program into statute. In December, Brown successfully fought to include authorization for GLRI in the Senate water bill.

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