CHICAGO, April 8 (UPI) -- An electric barrier designed to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes has made part of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal tricky for boaters, officials say.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has warned boaters to keep out of the water and not to stick hands and feet underwater in the area, the Chicago Tribune reported. The section where the electric barrier is active is between mile markers 296.1 and 296.7.
The barrier was activated Thursday, a year ahead of schedule. Scientists say it should be effective for all carp except those less than 3 inches, which have not been spotted closer than 116 miles downriver.
The carp, large voracious feeders with few natural predators in the Mississippi River system, escaped from fish farms and have become a major pest in the Mississippi and its tributaries. Officials in the Great Lakes states fear they could devastate the native fish, destroying commercial and sports fisheries.
Other states have pushed to close the locks in the Chicago canal, but Illinois and the federal government have resisted because of the effect on commercial shipping.
