Judge to toss Asian carp suit if it's not changed

(AP) A federal judge in Chicago is threatening to permanently dismiss a lawsuit filed by five Great Lake states over threats posed by Asian carp.

U.S. District Judge John Tharp issued an order Monday dismissing the claims, but he says they can amend the lawsuit. He gave attorneys general from Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Ohio and Pennsylvania until Jan. 11 to file amended claims against the Army Corps of Engineers.

The lawsuit sought an order requiring the corps and Chicago's Metropolitan Water Reclamation District to create a physical barrier in waterways that connect Lake Michigan to the Mississippi River watershed to help prevent the invasive Asian carp from getting into the Great Lakes.

The judge says the action demanded by plaintiffs is outside the corps' authority.