1.1 	A resolution
1.2 	memorializing the President and Congress and others to protect the Great Lakes from 
1.3 	aquatic invasive species.
1.4 	WHEREAS, the Great Lakes are a tremendous value to Minnesota as an environmental and 
1.5 	economic resource, both as the world's largest body of fresh water and as a crucial international 
1.6 	shipping channel; and
1.7 	WHEREAS, aquatic invasive species, including the recent introduction of the fish 
1.8 	killing viral haemorrhagic septicaemia (VHS) virus, have caused significant damage to native 
1.9 	environments and industrial operations in the Great Lakes and around the world; and
1.10 	WHEREAS, Minnesota's Lake Superior ports provide Minnesota farmers, miners, and 
1.11 	manufacturers with access to foreign markets through the Great Lakes/Saint Lawrence Seaway, 
1.12 	with nearly 41.7 million metric tons of maritime cargo through the Port of Duluth-Superior in 
1.13 	exchange for approximately 35.4 million metric tons of untreated ballast water in 2005; and
1.14 	WHEREAS, current federal law and enforcement governing the introduction of aquatic 
1.15 	invasive species into United States waters via ballast water of oceangoing and Great Lakes ships 
1.16 	and other sources are inadequate; and
1.17 	WHEREAS, because of the detrimental effects of imposing regional restrictions on 
1.18 	shipping, there is a need for uniform federal regulation and control; and
1.19 	WHEREAS, there are currently nationally accepted standards for drinking and treated 
1.20 	waste water quality that could be approved for ballast water treatment and made available to 
1.21 	ship operators; NOW, THEREFORE,
2.1 	BE IT RESOLVED by the Legislature of the State of Minnesota:
2.2 	That the Minnesota Legislature has a great concern for the protection of its environmental 
2.3 	and economic resources now imminently threatened by the VHS fish killing viruses invading 
2.4 	Lake St. Clair, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario;
2.5 	That the Minnesota Legislature urges the United States Congress to acknowledge the 
2.6 	national urgency of this problem and move quickly to enact federal legislation to establish a 
2.7 	strong ballast water regulatory program sufficient to prohibit further VHS virus infestations and 
2.8 	prevent future introduction of aquatic invasive species into all United States waters by requiring 
2.9 	disinfection and sterilization of all ballast water;
2.10 	That the Minnesota Legislature declares its support for the efforts of the United States 
2.11 	federal agencies, including the United States Geological Survey, the National Oceanic and 
2.12 	Atmospheric Administration, the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and the Coast 
2.13 	Guard, and Canadian government agencies to put in place an international ballast water treatment 
2.14 	and regulatory program for the Great Lakes and connecting channels; and
2.15 	That the Minnesota Legislature declares its support for a revised "Great Ships Initiative," 
2.16 	applicable to Great Lakes monitoring and enforcement of aquatic invasive species prohibition 
2.17 	and prevention efforts, a research and development project funded jointly by the Indiana Port 
2.18 	Commission and other Great Lakes ports, the U. S. Department of Transportation, the National 
2.19 	Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and other federal agencies with the revised goals of accelerating 
2.20 	and improving existing applicable disinfection technology and the development of monitoring 
2.21 	methods for disease and other invasive organisms found in ballast water.
2.22 	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of State of the State of Minnesota is 
2.23 	directed to prepare copies of this  memorial and transmit them to the President of the United States, 
2.24 	the President and the Secretary of the United States Senate, the Speaker and the Clerk of the 
2.25 	United States House of Representatives, Minnesota's Senators and Representatives in Congress, 
2.26 	federal agencies that regulate maritime transportation, the Great Lakes Commission, the Great 
2.27 	Lakes Fishery Commission, and the International Joint Commission, United States-Canada.