Bart Stupak: “I rise today to support funding for sea lamprey control in the Great Lakes. For those who are unfamiliar with the sea…”

“I rise today to support funding for sea lamprey control in the Great Lakes. For those who are unfamiliar with the sea lamprey, it is an eel-like creature--introduced into the Great Lakes by foreign ballast water-- which attaches itself to fish and literally sucks the life out of the fish. Without proper treatment, this foreign species would severely threaten the $4 billion per year Great Lakes fishing industry. While the Great Lakes Fishery Commission has made great strides in fighting the sea lamprey, infestation in the St. Marys River is threatening the lake trout in northern Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. More sea lamprey are produced in this river than all of the Great Lakes combined. In fact, lamprey levels are rapidly approaching record levels in this area, resulting in the death of 54% of all adult lake trout. The Senate has specifically designated nearly $9.4 million for the Great Lakes Fishery Commission for fiscal year 1999. Included in this amount is $8.7 million for the Sea Lamprey operations and research program and $1 million to combat the sea lamprey infestation in the St. Marys River in Michigan. We must stop this problem before we reverse the gains that have been made over the recent years in fighting the sea lamprey in the Great Lakes.”