CINCINNATI, OH – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers today released a research report on the operation of the electric dispersal barrier system in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. The electric barrier system is a key measure preventing the migration of two species of Asian carp, Silver and Bighead. The Corps commissioned the report as part of its ongoing research to refine the optimum operating parameters for the barriers.
All information available to the Corps indicates that the barrier system is working as designed. The Corps has undertaken numerous studies to determine and refine the optimal operating parameters of the electric barriers to ensure it is effective at containing Asian carp. The research report released today was conducted through a collaborative effort between the Corps' Engineer Research & Development Center and the Corps' barrier contractor, Smith-Root, Inc.
This Operational Protocols Report discusses the results of five laboratory research efforts related to the impact of the fish barrier and various other conditions likely to be encountered in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, which could affect the behavior of small Asian carp, applying conservative hypothetical “worst case” scenarios. Specifically, the research included experiments on electrical parameters, water conductivity, volitional challenge of electric fields, and water velocity. These studies were conducted in a controlled environment in Engineer Research & Development Center’s laboratories.
Research summarized in the Operational Protocols Report indicates the current barrier operating parameters are effective for fish as small as 5.4 inches in length. The research published in this report suggests that slightly higher operating parameters than those currently in use may be necessary to immobilize all very small Asian carp, as small as 1.7 to 3.2 inches in length.
The research also indicates that very small Asian carp may repeatedly challenge the electrical barriers at the current operating parameters, high levels of water conductivity could affect the operating parameters, and the swimming ability of small Asian carp is impeded by a combination of the electrical field and water velocity. Because the research was conducted under the physical constraints and limitations of a laboratory setting, further field research near the fish barrier system is needed in order to validate the results. Some of that research is already underway.