1.1A resolution1.2memorializing the President and Congress and others to protect the Great Lakes from 1.3aquatic invasive species.1.4WHEREAS, the Great Lakes are a tremendous value to Minnesota as an environmental and 1.5economic resource, both as the world's largest body of fresh water and as a crucial international 1.6shipping channel; and1.7WHEREAS, ballast water discharges from ships entering the Great Lakes are the leading 1.8pathway for the introduction of aquatic invasive species, with more than 30 new species being 1.9introduced in the last 50 years; and1.10WHEREAS, current federal ballast water regulations designed to protect the Great Lakes 1.11are ineffective. At least 11 new aquatic invasive species have been introduced from ballast water 1.12since current requirements for ballast water exchange with open ocean water went into effect, 1.13including the recent introduction of viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS) that directly threatens 1.14the Great Lakes fishery; and1.15WHEREAS, Minnesota's Lake Superior ports provide Minnesota farmers, miners, and 1.16manufacturers with access to foreign markets through the Great Lakes/Saint Lawrence Seaway, 1.17with nearly 41.7 million metric tons of maritime cargo through the Port of Duluth-Superior in 1.18exchange for approximately 35.4 million metric tons of untreated ballast water in 2005; and1.19WHEREAS, current federal laws and enforcement governing the introduction of aquatic 1.20invasive species into United States waters via ballast water of ocean-going and Great Lakes 1.21ships and other sources are inadequate; and2.1WHEREAS, the United States Congress and the legislatures of the Great Lakes states have 2.2the authority and responsibility for protecting the health and safety of their citizens and to protect 2.3and preserve the waters of the Great Lakes; NOW, THEREFORE,2.4BE IT RESOLVED by the Legislature of the State of Minnesota:2.5That the Minnesota Legislature has a great concern for the protection of its environmental 2.6and economic resources now imminently threatened by the VHS fish killing viruses invading 2.7Lake St. Clair, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario;2.8That the Minnesota Legislature urges the United States Congress to acknowledge the 2.9urgency of this problem and move quickly to enact federal legislation to establish a strong ballast 2.10water regulatory program that would establish uniform standards, which Great Lakes states may 2.11supplement in order to meet their responsibilities to protect the health and safety of their citizens 2.12and the integrity of their natural resources; and2.13That the Minnesota Legislature declares its support for a revised "Great Ships Initiative," 2.14applicable to Great Lakes monitoring and enforcement of aquatic invasive species prohibition 2.15and prevention efforts, a research and development project funded jointly by the Indiana Port 2.16Commission and other Great Lakes ports, the U. S. Department of Transportation, the National 2.17Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and other agencies with the revised goals of accelerating and 2.18improving existing applicable disinfection technology and the development of monitoring 2.19methods for disease and other invasive organisms and availability of ballast water treatment 2.20technology.2.21BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of State of the  State of Minnesota is 2.22directed to prepare copies of this  memorial and transmit them to the President of  the United 2.23States, the President and the Secretary of the  United States Senate, the Speaker and the Clerk 2.24of the United  States House of Representatives, Minnesota's Senators and  Representatives in 2.25Congress, federal agencies that regulate maritime transportation, the Great Lakes Commission, 2.26and the International Joint Commission, United States-Canada.