Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced a new agreement Monday to try to prevent invasive carp from reaching Lake Michigan.
For years, environmentalists and officials have worried about what would happen should invasive species of carp journey from the Mississippi River basin to Lake Michigan.
The solution, they hope, is a more than $1 billion project on the Des Plaines River about 30 miles from Chicago to block the fish. The Brandon Road Interbasin Project would do so through a series of electric, acoustic and other deterrents.
“The Great Lakes are the beating heart of Michigan’s economy, and Brandon Road will help us protect local communities and key industries, including fishing and boating, that support tens of thousands of good-paying jobs,” Whitmer said in a press release.
The announced deal, with Illinois and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, puts $114 million between the two states toward the first phase of the project.
Michigan has already contributed its $64 million share of that toward a feasibility study and initial construction. The agreement frees up hundreds of millions in federal money to get the project going.