MILWAUKEE, Jan. 5 (UPI) -- Shippers in the Midwest fear stronger regulations to protect the Great Lakes from invasive species will kill their struggling industry.
States bordering the lakes are considering new rules, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. Proposed federal legislation is stalled in Congress.
Under current federal rules, cargo ships are required to exchange fresh ballast water for salt in mid-ocean, so any foreign creatures will be killed. But overseas ships using the Great Lakes arrive with their holds full of cargo, exempting them from the exchange requirement.
Exotic species can lurk in small pools of water and get released in the Great Lakes when ships unload cargo and take on water in one port, and release it in another when they load up. Zebra mussels and other invaders threaten sport fishing, foul beaches and put native species at risk.
"We fight tooth and nail for every job we have, and when legislation is talked about that could adversely impact our shipping industry, we want to make sure we protect the jobs that we do have," said Andrew Lisak, executive director of The Development Association, an economic group in Wisconsin.
