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Schumer Wants To Combat Aquatic Invasive Species

TownePost Network/Flickr

WASHINGTON – US Senator Charles Schumer announced his effort to have passed an early detection and rapid response grant program to combat aquatic invasive species once they reach new waterways.

In the Hudson Valley alone, invasive species include Eurasian milfoil, Asian clam, Zebra mussel, Didymo, Water chestnut, Chinese mitten crab, Brittle Naiad, White perch, and Alewife.

Schumer’s bill would allow states and local authorities to petition the Department of the Interior for grants as soon as they identify a threat from invasive species.

“Early detection would allow locals to hire and train individuals that have a specific job responsibility to find invasive species,” he said on Wednesday. “Rapid response efforts contain and where possible eradicate invasive species before they get their stranglehold on the waterway.”

Schumer said the cost of such an effort would be in the tens of millions of dollars. He did not say where the money would come from.