Illinois has cleared a key obstacle in its efforts to block invasive carp from reaching the Great Lakes by securing necessary land parcels for the Brandon Road Interbasin Project. The move follows months of political tensions between state and federal officials. The $1.15 billion initiative aims to install barriers in the Des Plaines River near Joliet.
The silver carp, an invasive species that has overrun the Illinois River, poses a long-term threat to the Great Lakes ecosystem. For decades, officials have feared the fish—imported from Arkansas fish farms about 50 years ago to control algae—could migrate through Chicago's shipping canal, outcompeting native species and damaging tourism and fishing industries worth billions.
The Brandon Road Interbasin Project (BRIP), designed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, targets this risk with an underwater system featuring a bubble wall, acoustic blasts, an electric barrier, and flushing mechanisms along the Des Plaines River near Joliet. The project stalled earlier this year amid disputes between President Trump and Governor JB Pritzker. Trump froze over $100 million in federal funds tied to immigration enforcement, prompting Pritzker to delay transferring a 50-acre riverbed from Midwest Generation, a former coal plant operator.
By spring, the Army Corps secured funding to clear riverbed rocks, completing that phase in July, according to spokesperson Allen Marshall. Tensions resurfaced in late August when Trump threatened National Guard deployment to Chicago and accused Pritzker of obstructing carp efforts, stating, “The governor of Illinois is affected maybe more than anybody else... I’m not going to do anything about it.”
On September 30, Illinois finalized a deal for 2.75 acres of upland parcels, advancing the project. However, concerns linger over coal ash contamination at the site. In a 2024 letter, Pritzker raised cleanup costs, with his spokesperson noting, “It would be irresponsible to write a blank check to the Corps of Engineers... without having a better understanding of what we’re agreeing to for the long term.” The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is developing an investigation plan.
Meanwhile, monitoring efforts continue. Since 2019, the Illinois Natural History Survey and Department of Natural Resources have tracked carp populations from June to October. Quantitative ecologist Michael Spear reported progress: “We’re making an increasingly large dent in the population... That incentive seems to be paying off,” citing declines near Starved Rock State Park over five years via incentivized harvesting at 10 cents extra per pound. Spear warned, “If they get into the Great Lakes, it’s going to become a much more regional problem.”
Earlier this month, Pritzker and six Great Lakes governors urged Congress to fully fund BRIP as a “national priority.”