Durbin, Duckworth, Stabenow Secure Increase In Federal Cost Share For Brandon Road Project In The 2022 Water Resources Development Act
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) announced that they secured another increase to the federal cost share for the Brandon Road Project in the 2022 Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) that was passed out of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works today. Under the provision, the federal government will fund 90 percent of the construction of the project designed to prevent Asian Carp from reaching the Great Lakes, significantly lowering the costs of the project for Illinois.
“Invasive Asian Carp poses a real economic and environmental threat to one of our region’s most valuable resources, the Great Lakes,” said Durbin. “The Brandon Road project will play a vital role in protecting the Great Lakes from the irreparable harm of invasive species. With the increased commitment from the federal government that we secured in the 2022 Water Resources Development Act, we are one step closer to finally seeing this important project come to fruition.”
“The Brandon Road Project is critical in protecting the Great Lakes’ exposure to Asian Carp, a growing threat to our entire inland waterways system and to the countless Illinois communities and businesses that rely on strong and vibrant aquatic ecosystems,” Duckworth said. “Increasing the federal cost share for this project is something we’ve been working toward for years. I’m proud to have it included in this year’s committee-passed Water Resources Development Act, and I will keep working to ensure it is signed into law.”
“The Brandon Road Lock and Dam is a critical chokepoint in the Chicago waterway system to prevent Asian carp and other invasive species from entering the Great Lakes. As a member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, I have worked closely with Senators Durbin and Duckworth to secure this increase in the federal investment to expedite the completion of this critical project and get a permanent solution in place as soon as possible. We must prevent Asian carp from wreaking havoc in the Great Lakes and preserve our Michigan way of life,” said Stabenow.
Durbin, Duckworth, and Stabenow have been tireless advocates for the Brandon Road Project and finding a comprehensive approach to protecting the Great Lakes from the threat of Asian Carp. Through previous Water Resources Development Acts, they secured authorization for design and construction of the Brandon Road Project and increased the federal cost-share for both construction and operations and maintenance. Earlier this year, they secured $225.8 million in construction funding for the project from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and $4.6 million in design funding from the Fiscal Year 2022 Omnibus Appropriations Act. Durbin was also instrumental in forcing the release of the original Brandon Road Study, a draft plan that paved the way for the project, after the Trump Administration stalled the report’s release.
The project will construct a new engineered channel at Brandon Road in Joliet, Illinois, that will be used to test and deploy a range of technologies that will prevent Asian Carp from moving further north to the Great Lakes.
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