TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. - Officials say the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will release a short list of possible solutions next year to speed up the fight against Asian carp.
The corps has been widely accused of moving too slowly to prevent Asian carp and other exotic species from invading the Great Lakes.
Previously, the corps insisted it would need until late 2015 to recommend a permanent fix -- a timetable challenged by five states in a federal lawsuit and legislation proposed in Congress.
Critics say faster action is needed as the huge, aggressive carp that have infested the Mississippi River and many of its tributaries bear down on the lakes, where they would gobble up food needed by native species and further disrupt ailing ecosystems.
Obama administration officials say the corps will pick up the pace under a revised strategy in which it no longer will devise a single preferred method.
Instead, the agency will put forward several options and leave it to Congress and the public to decide which they prefer.
