Trump administration stops work on Great Lakes Asian carp project near Joliet

Gov. JB Pritzker is calling on the Trump administration to immediately reverse a work stoppage on an embattled project needed to keep invasive Asian carp out of the Great Lakes near Joliet.

Contractors at the Brandon Road Interbasin Project received a work stoppage order on July 24 stating the project is under administrative review, despite about $2 million worth of material already on site. Work was slated to begin this week, with shaft drilling scheduled for September. Jobsite trailers were also already set up at the project, according to Will County officials.

"Under my administration, Illinois has spearheaded this project to protect the entire Great Lakes region. Yet, the Trump Administration repeatedly throws up roadblocks and has now ordered work to stop altogether with no explanations,” Pritzker said Thursday . “The Great Lakes provide drinking water to more than 40 million people and support a $52 billion regional economy. It's time for the Trump Administration to uphold the federal government’s obligations, stop playing political games, and move this project forward.”

The $1.15 billion project in the Des Plaines River near Joliet is seen as a crucial way to stop invasive Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes. Without a barrier, the carp could wreak havoc on the $20 billion fishing and boating industries and upend the freshwater ecosystem, experts say. The species already has made it into the Illinois River from the Mississippi River. Fishermen contracted by the state of Illinois have removed more than 78 million pounds of invasive carp from waterways.

There have been several delays to the project, including a pause in December for another administrative review. President Donald Trump in March said "only Trump" could save the Great Lakes from Asian carp and urged governors to "join in on the fight." Those words on social media came after he met with Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, prompting both Pritzker and Sen. Dick Durbin to demand Trump lift the review and release federal funds on the Joliet project.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in April instead announced that it would put Michigan officials in charge of the $1.15 billion barrier designed to keep the invasive carp from reaching the Great Lakes — moving from the Rock Island district to its Detroit District.

Both sides engaged in a war of words in April, with Pritzker calling the move a “political stunt” and warning that Illinois would explore legal action if the Trump administration broke legally-binding agreements. In announcing the move, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works Adam Telle accused Illinois of being an “unreliable partner, delinquent on its payments and real estate commitments,” a claim that Pritzker denied.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources said it first learned of the work stoppage through contractors — and followed through on a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Thursday, with the work stoppage confirmed on July 28 after repeated attempts to reach their Detroit District.

Renee Snow, interim IDNR director, wrote in a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that she wants an “immediate” meeting to “substantiate the work stoppage and remedy project cost, schedule, and partnership impacts.”

Snow wrote that the breakdown in communication is inconsistent with procedures established under a jointly negotiated plan that guided the project.

Gary G. Perinar III, president of Carpenters Local 174 in Joliet, told the Sun-Times the project delays “not only endanger the safety of the Great Lakes but also negatively affect the working men and women who have supported this project locally.”

“This project needs to happen,” Perinar III said. “...Our members stand by eagerly awaiting the opportunity to get the job done building and strengthening our communities.”

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers did not respond to a request for comment on Thursday.

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