Poll Supports Asian Carp Protections

A first-of-its-kind public opinion poll shows an overwhelming majority of people who live near the Great Lakes support immediate action to install additional structural protections that can keep Asian carp from moving out of Illinois rivers and into the Great Lakes.

The poll – commissioned by the Great Lakes Partnership to Block Asian Carp – is the first effort to survey residents in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin about their understanding of the risk of invasive carp.

In addition, the poll gauged support for potential solutions recommended by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to stop the nonnative fish from entering the Great Lakes. These include a proposal by Gov. Rick Snyder to help fund the ongoing operations and maintenance of the additional security improvements based on each state’s respective share of the Great Lakes. Under this “fair share” scenario, the state of Michigan would pay the most of any state by covering nearly half of the installation costs, while a state such as Illinois would pay only two percent or less. Michigan also has offered to pay the share of any state that cannot pay its own portion to block Asian carp and has dedicated state funds in the upcoming 2019 budget for this purpose.

“The poll results clearly demonstrate that Great Lakes residents understand that the time to act on Asian carp is now,” Gov. Snyder said. “We formed the Block Asian Carp partnership earlier this year to urgently address the threat invasive carp pose to our waters. The public’s support for immediate action affirms the importance of those efforts. It’s time to move forward with additional security measures at the Brandon Road Lock and Dam that will protect our Great Lakes and economic future.”

Highlights of the survey include:

• More than 9 in 10 respondents from each state believed it was important to immediately increase protections to block the spread of Asian carp to the Great Lakes at the recommendation of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
• More than 7 in 10 respondents from each state are likely to support the “fair share” funding proposal given the specific percent their state would be asked to pay.
• Support rises to more than 8 in 10 respondents likely to support the proposal when told Michigan would pay the share of any state that cannot pay its own portion to block Asian carp.
• Support for the fair share funding proposal is bipartisan, with more than 8 in 10 Republicans and Democrats in each state supporting their state’s funding contribution.

“People across the Great Lakes region recognize that Asian carp pose a major threat to their state’s economy and environment and they believe it is critical to increase protections immediately to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes,” Alliance for the Great Lakes Vice President for Policy Molly Flanagan said.

“The poll results show that more than 80 percent of the respondents want leaders in each of the Great Lakes states to work together to prevent Asian carp from entering new rivers and lakes, including the Great Lakes,” Flanagan said.

The online five-state survey was conducted by the national research firm Qualtrics from Aug. 22-Sept. 8, 2018 and is based on more than 3,000 responses. The sample was balanced to closely reflect each state’s age, race/ethnicity, gender, and geographic makeup.

The interstate Block Asian Carp partnership is a diverse coalition founded by Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin, the city of Chicago and the province of Ontario, which have committed to providing financial or policy support for the Army Corps’ tentative plan. The coalition members are united in support of the Army Corps’ recommendation to install a suite of prevention technologies at Brandon Road Lock and Dam in Joliet, Illinois, the most effective proposal yet developed to prevent the spread of Asian carp into the Great Lakes.