Many of you have seen the extensive recent media coverage of the alarming discovery of Asian carp DNA just 6 miles from Lake Michigan. This was punctuated by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources' decision to treat nearly 6 miles of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal with a fish poison to kill any nearby Asian carp during a power shutdown on an electric barrier, a barrier built to deter the destructive fish from moving up the canal. These dramatic efforts put an exclamation point on the crisis we face today.

The Asian carp is a jumping, jumbo-sized threat to the Great Lakes. Known to batter boaters and even knock them into the water at the sound of a passing motor, the fish are voracious filter feeders that can grow to more than 4 feet long, weigh up to 100 pounds and quickly dominate a body of water by gobbling up the same food that sustains native fish populations. Once established in the Great Lakes, the fish could devastate the region's $7 billion fishing industry and permanently alter how recreational boaters, anglers and tourists use and enjoy the lakes and their tributaries.

Last Thursday night, officials announced the discovery of a bighead carp - one of two species of Asian carp that now threaten the Great Lakes - in the treated area of the canal some 25 miles from Lake Michigan. This news followed on the heels of the Nov. 20 announcement that Asian carp DNA had been found within just 6 miles of the lake after an apparent breach of the electrical barrier. Yet there is still no plan for knocking out this problem permanently.

The Alliance is stepping up our efforts to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes, efforts that began seven years ago when the Alliance served on the advisory panel that called for erecting electrical barriers to repel Asian carp in the canal. In the last several weeks:

-- We supported Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm's call for Michigan attorney general Mike Cox to take legal action to prevent the carp from entering the lakes, and sent a letter to the other state attorneys general urging similar action

-- We called for immediate closure of all Chicago locks leading to Lake Michigan until officials demonstrate that the electrical barrier has not been breached by Asian carp.

But these are only short-term answers.

The Alliance has distinguished itself as the first Great Lakes organization to call for a permanent solution to keep Asian carp and other invasive species from moving up the Mississippi into Lake Michigan - an idea that's quickly going from wild to necessary. A year ago, the Alliance issued a report calling for permanent separation of the Great Lakes and Mississippi basins, a move that would stop the flow of invasives between the basins for good.

Now we need your help! Please make calls today:

Contact your members of Congress and senators and ask them to protect both of these great watersheds from the perils of invasive species. Call 202-224-3121 and ask to be connected to your representative's and senators' offices.

Much work lies ahead. As the situation develops we'll be posting updates on our website, www.greatlakes.org, and on our Facebook page and Twitter feed to keep you informed. We'll also let you know what you can do to pressure legislators and government agencies to act.

Thank you for being part of the Alliance family - and thank you for helping protect the Great Lakes.

Please share this with others who care about the Great Lakes.

For more information about invasive species in the Great Lakes, see http://www.greatlakes.org/asiancarp/120709, or contact Joel Brammeier at joel.brammeier@greatlakes.org.