[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 51 Introduced in House (IH)]







111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 H. R. 51

 To direct the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service 
  to conduct a study of the feasibility of a variety of approaches to 
  eradicating Asian carp from the Great Lakes and their tributary and 
                           connecting waters.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 6, 2009

   Mr. Kirk introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To direct the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service 
  to conduct a study of the feasibility of a variety of approaches to 
  eradicating Asian carp from the Great Lakes and their tributary and 
                           connecting waters.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Eradicating Asian Carp in the Great 
Lakes Study Act of 2009''.

SEC. 2. ASIAN CARP ERADICATION STUDY AND REPORT.

    (a) In General.--The Director of the United States Fish and 
Wildlife Service shall conduct a study to--
            (1) identify methods to eradicate Asian carp from the 
        Illinois Waterway System, including methods for harvesting 
        Asian carp; and
            (2) evaluate the feasibility and costs of each such method.
    (b) Consultation.--The Director shall conduct the study under 
subsection (a) in consultation with--
            (1) the Administrator of the National Oceanic and 
        Atmospheric Administration; and
            (2) at least two interstate bodies representing the 
        Mississippi River and Great Lakes States.
    (c) Contents.--The study shall include, at a minimum, an evaluation 
of the feasibility of temporarily harvesting Asian carp as a method for 
eradicating the carp from the Illinois River. Such evaluation shall 
include evaluations of--
            (1) species biomass and distribution for all fish species 
        in the Illinois River, including a comparison with historical 
        biomass and distribution data if such data is available;
            (2) possible harvesting methods for Asian carp;
            (3) possible products that could be generated from Asian 
        carp;
            (4) available types of temporary processing locations for 
        harvested Asian carp;
            (5) the environmental effects of constructing and operating 
        temporary processing facilities at such locations;
            (6) methods to repopulate the Illinois River ecosystem with 
        native species; and
            (7) the effect of Asian carp on the Illinois River 
        ecosystem if temporary harvesting of Asian Carp is not 
        conducted.
    (d) Report.--
            (1) In general.--The Director, in consultation with the 
        Administrator, shall submit to Congress a report containing the 
        findings, conclusions, and recommendations resulting from the 
        study under subsection (a).
            (2) Contents.--The report shall include recommendations 
        concerning--
                    (A) regulatory and other mechanisms to ensure--
                            (i) expeditious action to address the Asian 
                        carp problem;
                            (ii) effective eradication of such carp; 
                        and
                            (iii) that an appropriate deadline is set 
                        for the completion of harvesting of such carp;
                    (B) preferred harvesting methods for Asian carp;
                    (C) the ideal quantity and distribution of--
                            (i) temporary processing locations for 
                        harvested Asian carp; and
                            (ii) temporary buying stations for 
                        harvested Asian carp; and
                    (D) methods to repopulate the Illinois River 
                ecosystem with native species.
    (e) Deadlines.--The Director shall--
            (1) begin the study under subsection (a) not later than 
        three months after the date of enactment of this Act;
            (2) complete the study not later than 15 months after the 
        date of enactment of this Act; and
            (3) submit the report under subsection (d) not later than 
        three months after the date of completion of the study.
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