WASHINGTON — May 13, 2014 — Congress is poised to close the Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam in an effort to shield Minnesota’s northern waters from invasive Asian carp.
The provision is part of an $8 billion water infrastructure bill that will allow funding to improve ports, waterways and projects tied to flood protection, drinking water, dams and environmental restoration. The bill, due for a vote in the Senate this week and the House next week, is expected to pass both chambers with bipartisan consensus.
Environmentalists cheered the agreement to incorporate the lock closure into the final legislation, calling the invasive fish a grave threat to Minnesota’s tourism industry.
Construction of the Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam was approved by Congress in 1937 and completed in 1963, allowing navigation to the head of the Mississippi River’s channel and spanning the remnants of its only waterfall.
Before the lock and dam were built, St. Anthony Falls served as a natural geologic barrier, said Steve Hirsch, the state Department of Natural Resources’ director of water and ecological services.
“There’s no one thing that’s going to solve the problem for the entire state,” Hirsch said. “But it’s a very big step.”
State DNR officials have been battling the spread of Asian carp since the early 2000s. As one of the highest and most northern dams, the Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam complex is considered by some to be one of the last strong defenses to check the spread of the invasive fish into lakes such as Itasca, Bemidji, Mille Lacs and other tributaries.
A voracious species, Asian carp can grow to 40 pounds or more and some can jump up to 10 feet out of the water. They compete with native game fish, including bass, walleye, and northern pike, for food and habitat.
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