By Laura Weber, Michigan Public Radio Network
LANSING, MI – Michigan will join other Great Lakes states in a Chicago federal courtroom Monday to make their case against Asian Carp. The states are calling for locks to be closed immediately to keep the fish out until more permanent barriers can be installed.
John Sellek is with the Michigan attorney general's office. He says the discovery of one of the fish near Lake Michigan earlier this summer should convince a federal judge to take action.
"Because that bighead carp was found in Lake Calumet just a few miles from Lake Michigan and beyond all the barriers that the government says are effective, which clearly they're not," Sellek says. "We feel that we want to get those locks closed right away so the discussion can take place while the Great Lakes are protected."
Sellek says the judge also scheduled hearings for the following week, which he says is a good sign for states that want permanent barriers between the Mississippi River and Lake Michigan.