CHICAGO, Aug. 24 (UPI) -- Attorneys from five Great Lakes states have asked a federal judge to close Chicago-area shipping locks to prevent Asian carp from reaching Lake Michigan.
Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Minnesota want U.S. District Judge Robert M. Dow to grant their request for an emergency injunction forcing the Army Corps of Engineers to close the locks, the Chicago Tribune reported Tuesday.
Assistant Attorney General Robert Reichel of Michigan called Chicago's man-made ship canals a "carp highway" and said the threat of carp entering Lake Michigan has reached a "biological tipping point."
Illinois politicians and business leaders vigorously oppose closing the locks fearing it will have a negative impact on barge operations and the industries that rely on them, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported.
Dow said he will consider the request for an emergency injunction following a three-day hearing in Chicago beginning Sept. 7.
