Rep. Brown offered the following resolution:

            House Resolution No. 211.  

            A resolution to urge the hydrologic separation of the Great Lakes basin from the Mississippi River basin.

            Whereas, The Great Lakes basin is linked to the Mississippi River basin through man-made canals and waterways in the Chicago area. For over a century, these canals and waterways have allowed the flow of commerce, water, fish, and other aquatic organisms between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River system; and

            Whereas, Approximately two billion gallons of water are diverted each day from the Great Lakes through these canals and waterways, lowering water levels on Lake Michigan and Lake Huron by approximately 2.5 inches. Every inch that lake levels are lowered increases the cost of shipping, decreases boating accessibility and safety on the Great Lakes, and harms the state and local economies that depend on these industries; and

            Whereas, Chicago's man-made waterways and canals enable invasive species to move between the Great Lakes basin and the Mississippi River basin, placing both of these nationally vital water systems at risk. Past invasions already cost the Great Lakes region an estimated $100 million per year. Asian carp now threaten to use these artificial connections to invade the Great Lakes with irreversible and potentially dire consequences for the fishing and boating industries that generate billions of dollars in economic benefit for the region; and

            Whereas, With uncertainty over the future of Great Lakes water levels and with the current threat from Asian carp, the time has come to re-establish the hydrologic separation of the Great Lakes basin from the Mississippi River basin. Other solutions can be found to replace the local benefits to the Chicago area from the canals and waterways, but only hydrologic separation will provide the level of protection necessary to ensure the continued ecological and economic vitality of the Great Lakes; now, therefore, be it

            Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we urge the hydrologic separation of the Great Lakes basin from the Mississippi River basin; and be it further

            Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and the members of the Michigan congressional delegation.