By Ryan Morden
Oswego, NY – The head of Oswego County's tourism department is urging the county legislature to call upon the state to do more to protect the region's waterways from the potential impacts of Asian Carp.
Dave Turner, Director of Community Development, Tourism and Planning for Oswego County, said the sports fisherman tourism industry could be affected by the Asian Carp because the species could consume considerable amounts of native fish in the area waterways.
Turner said the carp could grow to be 60 to 100 pounds.
Turner puts it into perspective, "Oswego County has about 10 state and world records for various species. The records for salmon, which are the largest of those, are in the 33 to 35 pound range, so we're talking about fish that are two, three or four times the size of some of the world records that have been caught here."
He said Asian Carp have not turned up in Lake Ontario, but have made a presence in Lake Michigan.
Last week, federal authorities announced a nearly $80 million plan to address the problem throughout the Great Lakes.