State secures first construction contract in effort to address nuisance species in the Great Lakes

A collaboration between Michigan, Illinois and the U.S. Army Corps. of Engineers (U.S.A.C.E.) aimed at keeping invasive carp and other nuisance species from moving into the Great Lakes is one step closer to its kickoff, with the project securing its first construction contractors. 

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources cheered the development in a statement Monday, noting that the $15.5 million contract had been awarded to Miami Marine Services on November 27 for site preparation and riverbed rock removal for an engineered channel in the Brandon Road Interbasin Project.

Miami Marine will partner with Michels Construction, Inc. of Milwaukee, Wis., for completion of this contract, the statement noted. 

The project will be one of three construction increments in efforts by Michigan, Illinois and the U.S.A.C.E. to keep invasive carp from entering the Great Lakes through a critical pinch point located at Brandon Road Lock and Dam near Joliet, Ill.

“This contract award is an important step forward as we get shovels into the ground on the Brandon Road Project,” said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. “The Great Lakes define Michigan. They support tens of thousands of good-paying jobs and drive tens of billions of dollars in economic impact. Building Brandon Road will help us protect local communities, grow our economy, and ensure future Michiganders can enjoy these incredible natural resources for generations to come.”

Earlier this year, Whitmer pledged $64 million in support of the project, matching a $50 million commitment from Illinois and unlocking $274 million in federal funding for the effort. 

If invasive carp move into the Great Lakes they could outcompete native species and greatly harm the ecology and economy of the entire Great Lakes region including rivers and inland lakes, and its $20 billion fishing and boating industries, the DNR warns. 

The fish can grow to be up to 60 pounds, eating 40% of their body weight each day. According to the DNR, a single female can produce one million eggs, with only 10 females and 10 males crossing into the Great Lakes needed to establish a population.