Federal funding is on its way for a project to help prevent invasive carp from entering the Great Lakes.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers explains that a second contract has been awarded for the Brandon Road Interbasin Project in Joliet, IL, for $113 million, which will complete the remainder of the project’s Increment 1.
The project includes technological deterrents designed to prevent the carp and other aquatic nuisance species from moving upstream to the Great Lakes while minimizing impacts to waterways in Illinois as well.
The project will include adding to the basin’s right descending bank wall, channel rock excavation, and a downstream boat ramp, among others.
Governor Tony Evers wrote a letter to President Donald Trump’s Office last week asking him to release the funding, saying it was the Trump administration that was holding up the funding for months.
WhiteHouse.gov says that President Trump fully supports the project, but Illinois Governor JB Pritzker “decided to delay the State’s acquisition of property, which is necessary for construction to begin.”
