Asian carp issue unresolved
It's amazing to me how area news reaches many corners of this country.
Three people have asked about the Asian carp situation in the Chicago Sanitary Shipping Canal, and how the U.S. Corps of Engineers dropped the ball on this issue. I was in southern California helping our grandson celebrate his 10th birthday and I never expected to be confronted by folks out there.
When I stepped off the plane and on to the sidewalk at O'Hare International this week, I was greeted with the typical, frigid, Chicago deep freeze. But it was when I got home and checked my e-mails when I realized some people back here are more than just inquisitive about this matter. In fact, at least a half dozen e-mails from readers expressed frustration and anger concerning the Corps and how it "dumped" the issue into the lap of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
The corps had the responsibility to erect an electric barrier on the canal in an effort to stop the migration of the Asian carp in to the Great Lakes, and Lake Michigan in particular. Apparently the barrier's electric current was enough to deter the migration. The state DNR wound up applying a special fish-killing chemical in to the canal with dismal results.
And while I was gone the Corps was supposed to fix the electric barrier by raising the level of current. Now we wait and see.
Fishing report: In the meantime, local anglers are testing their skills on the lakes that have safe ice. The recordings on my voice mail told of great catches on the following waterways: Fox Valley Gardens (Nielsen's Channels) for bluegills, crappie and white bass. The Fox Chain has been excellent for panfish, mainly in the side and back channels off of Channel Lake and Pistakee Lake.
The annual warnings are out for forest preserve lakes and ponds in both Cook and DuPage Counties. It's "fish at your own risk." The same holds true in McHenry County.
Lake Michigan: And once again Navy Pier continues to shine as a top perch spot - or at least it is for now, before the ice floes create problems.
Mike Jackson can be reached via e-mail at angler88@att.net, and you can catch his radio program 6-7 a.m. Sundays on WSBC 1240-AM.