Environment committee  What I would say is that I think it's important to look at not just Asian carp and what their potential impact could be on the Great Lakes but also at the impact of all the invasive species on the Great Lakes. Another figure I'll throw out there is that the Green Budget Coalitio

Environment committee  I looked at the federal budget numbers for each of the federal budget reports for 2010 to 2013.

Environment committee  Oh, sorry: yes.

Environment committee  I'd say that the U.S. should be spending more than Canada, given population numbers. But when I'm talking about investment, I'm not talking about just what needs to be invested to clean up the areas of concern. I think at this point we need to be looking at the threats to the Gre

Environment committee  I have heard a little bit about it, but I don't have details on it.

Environment committee  I definitely said that it's difficult to find comparable numbers, but I would say that the Great Lakes restoration initiative, $1.68 billion since 2010, was on top of what the United States has been spending on areas of concern.

Environment committee  I researched that in a report, so I could find you some of the original numbers and follow up.

Environment committee  I have tried to look at some of those numbers before. That's why one of my recommendations was that there needs to be more clarity on what spending is happening and what programs are taking place so that the public can understand—

Environment committee  It's a complicated process that involves a number of different steps, building reservoirs and building barriers. The other important thing to understand is that the reason these barriers exist is that there's a series of canals in the city of Chicago and the whole city sort of de

Environment committee  There was one. The army corps came to Toronto last week and had one study in the city of Toronto, which I attended. There were a number of different representatives, mostly from the provincial level of government. I believe the next step is for them to take this to the U.S. Congr

Environment committee  Sure.

Environment committee  Yes, you're absolutely correct. The Army Corps of Engineers is currently studying how to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes. They have identified seven options for doing so. There's a range that includes things like non-structural measures all the way up to complete separatio

Environment committee  I'm not sure if the federal or Ontario governments have officially responded to the study, but I feel that they should definitely be involved and be submitting an official position, because we have a lot at stake as well in the Great Lakes.

Environment committee  I'd have to double-check.

Environment committee  Thank you. That's a good question. One easy answer is that Asian carp produce a lot of waste. They're taking in 20% of their body weight in a day, in terms of food, and then they're excreting a lot that in an undigested form. What happens is that they make the water much more m