U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar's amendment to fight Asian carp by closing the Upper St. Anthony Falls lock within a year has passed the Senate, Klobuchar's office announced Thursday morning.
The amendment, whose co-sponsor was Minnesota Sen. Al Franken, was including in the Senate's Water Resources Development Act.
"Asian carp not only pose a serious threat to Minnesota's environment, they also threaten the recreation and fishing industries that play a key role in the state's economy," Klobuchar said. "Today's action is a significant step forward to help the state take action to protect Minnesota's waterways so we can keep this invasive species from wreaking havoc on our lakes and rivers."
Earlier this year, Klobuchar introduced the Upper Mississippi Conservation and River Protection Act (Upper Mississippi CARP Act) that was similar to the amendment that passed Thursday. The bill was introduced with Senator Franken and Reps. Keith Ellison, Erik Paulsen, Tim Walz, and Rick Nolan, and would help keep Asian carp out of the state's waterways by closing the Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock if certain criteria are met.
Klobuchar also co-sponsored an additional amendment to the Water Resources Development Act, introduced by Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), to help create a coordinated state-federal response to the Asian carp threat.
