The Army Corps of Engineers is hold 
public meetings to gather input on options for enhanced control of invasive species in the Brandon Road Lock & Dam area near Joliet.
After extensive research, the ACE published the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) in January, 2014. GLMRIS lays out several possible plans for preventing “aquatic nuisance species” such as Asian carp from migrating from the river system to the Great Lakes. The study describes eight possible action plans — everything from doing pretty much what we are doing now (electric barriers and chemical treatments) to a complete separation of the river system from the Great Lakes.
One of the options studied entails modifying the Brandon Road Lock on the Des Plaines river so that water is never transferred from the downriver to the upriver side of the lock. This is accomplished using “directional flushing” of the lock chamber.
The public is invited to attend one of two meetings, or to submit comments on line. The meetings are Saturday, December 6, 2014, 1:00 PM — 4:00 PM, Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, and Tuesday, December 9, 2014, 3:00 PM — 6:00 PM local time, Gleacher Center, 450 North Cityfront Plaza Drive, Chicago.
There are multiple opportunities for public comment. For more details, see http://glmris.anl.gov/brandon-rd/public-meetings/.
News coverage video from WTTW’s Chicago Tonight.
Did you know:
- The Brandon Road lock lifts vessels about 34 feet, and takes about 19 minutes to fill.
- The Great Lakes contain over 6 QUADRILLION gallons of fresh water. That’s 6,000,000,000,000,000 gallons.
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