A carp solution with economic benefits?

The debate about how to stop the spread of Asian carp has largely centered around economic fears. People in Michigan are worried that if Asian Carp establish in the Great Lakes the regional sport and commercial fishing industries will be destroyed. People around Chicago are worried that area shipping and tourism will suffer if the locks of the Chicago area waterways are closed as part of the effort to block carp migration.

A story in today’s New York Times looks at one carp solution that could benefit the shipping industry and the Chicago area — the construction of major shipping and terminal facilities that would separate the Lake Michigan and Mississippi watersheds without stopping maritime transportation.

In a 2005 report, Chicago Metropolis 2020 called for building major terminals where freight could be transferred easily among different modes of transportation, like rail cars, trucks and river barges. The terminals would allow shippers to load their goods onto the most efficient means of transport. Construction of five such terminals in key locations on the outskirts of Chicago, along with other efficiencies and infrastructure improvements, could save $5 billion a year in trucking costs alone, the report said.

A permanent ecological barrier between Lake Michigan and Illinois waterways would require the development of a massive water treatment facility that would block the movement of aquatic organisms, the Times reports.

The water treatment plant would be part of a larger transportation complex that would enable shipments to move efficiently and quickly up and down the Illinois River and other waterways. The complex might include cranes capable of hoisting boats from the water, railroad sidings and truck bays — and possibly massive conveyor belts to move cargo or even boats.

The federal government has committed more than $78 million to blocking Asian carp migration, and some of these funds could help modernize the shipping industry.

While the federal government would most likely cover at least part of the construction cost, private industry has already demonstrated a capacity to build such facilities without massive government aid. The railroad company Union Pacific is building a $370 million intermodal facility on 3,900 acres outside Peoria that is set to open this year.