Representative Alexander calls for measures to protect the Great Lakes

State Rep. Greg Alexander today highlighted an announcement by Governor Gretchen Whitmer to strengthen the Great Lakes’ defenses against invasive species – an issue that is a top priority for him in the current legislative session.

Alexander was part of a letter the Great Lakes Legislative Caucus sent to Whitmer, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and other officials last month expressing the need for action on the Brandon Road Interbasin Project. The project will build an ecosystem protection mechanism that prevents the upstream migration of invasive carp and other aquatic species through a layered system of structural and non-structural control measures. It is named after the Brandon Road Lock and Dam in Illinois, which has been identified as a critical point in preventing invasive carp from reaching the Great Lakes.

Today, Whitmer announced that the state has signed an agreement with the U.S. Amy Corps of Engineers and the state of Illinois to jointly fund the construction and implementation of the project. According to the governor, the agreement will release $274 million in federal funds and $114 million in state funds for the first of three phases of a total $1.15 billion project.

“Every day that this project didn’t start meant that our Great Lakes, which provide hundreds of thousands of jobs and generate billions of dollars in wages each year, were at risk from invasive species,” said Alexander, of Carsonville. “Now work can begin on a permanent solution that protects people’s livelihoods, our communities along the lakeshore and our state’s economy. This is a huge win for Michigan and resources that are both valuable and unique to our state. I look forward to completing this project and will continue to fight for the residents and employers across the Thumb who depend on our Great Lakes and have expressed concern about this urgent issue.”

Alexander serves on a subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee that covers agriculture, rural development and natural resources. He represents parts of Lapeer, Sanilac and Tuscola counties and all of Huron County in the Michigan House of Representatives.