https://phys.org/news/2018-08-non-native-species-great-lakes.html

While experts say their introduction to the planet's largest system of fresh water is alarming, the discovery validates arguments from public officials and environmental groups who say monitoring is necessary for early detection.

Cornell has been monitoring zooplankton populations in all five of the Great Lakes since 2012, but the new species were located through a separate program funded by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which has provided billions of dollars in federal funding for conservation and restoration. Earlier this month, the U.S. Senate voted to fund the program with $300 million, breaking with President Donald Trump's proposed budget that sought to cut funds to $30 million. The appropriations bill still needs to be signed by Trump by Oct. 1 to secure funding, but at a public meeting earlier this week Chris Korleski, director of the EPA's Great Lakes National Program Office based in Chicago, said he was "optimistic."