093_HJ0020

 
                                     LRB093 10688 HSS 11046 r

 1                       HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS, The prospective invasion  of  bighead  carp  and
 3    silver  carp  has  been  identified  as a major threat to the
 4    Great Lakes ecosystem; and

 5        WHEREAS, Bighead carp and silver carp were spotted in the
 6    summer of 2002 within  55  miles  of  Lake  Michigan  in  the
 7    Chicago  Sanitary  and  Ship  Canal,  which  connects  to the
 8    Mississippi River and the Great Lakes systems; and

 9        WHEREAS, It is imperative that aggressive action be taken
10    to safeguard the ecological and  economic  integrity  of  the
11    Great Lakes from this threat; therefore, be it

12        RESOLVED,   BY   THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES  OF  THE
13    NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF  ILLINOIS,  THE
14    SENATE  CONCURRING  HEREIN,  that the members of the Illinois
15    General  Assembly  acknowledge  the   significance   of   the
16    ecological   and   economic   damage   associated   with  the
17    prospective invasion and spread of bighead and  silver  carp;
18    and be it further

19        RESOLVED,  That  the  Illinois General Assembly urges the
20    United States Department  of  the  Interior,  U.S.  Fish  and
21    Wildlife  Service, to add bighead carp and silver carp to the
22    list of injurious  wildlife  under  the  Lacey  Act,  thereby
23    prohibiting  the importation and interstate transportation of
24    live specimens or viable eggs of these two species; and be it
25    further

26        RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be delivered  to
27    Gale  Norton, United States Secretary of the Interior, and to
28    each member of the Illinois congressional delegation.