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Landowners and border wall opponents in Zapata County say contractors bulldozed property near San Ygnacio this week before landowners signed right-of-entry agreements or went through condemnation proceedings, raising new questions about property rights and the pace of border wall construction in South Texas.
Elsa Hull, who lives near San Ygnacio and has been involved in opposition to the project, said she went to the riverfront Tuesday after receiving reports of bulldozing near the Rio Grande.
"I received a message that border wall contractors were dozing on private property without permission. That came as a big shock to me," Hull said.
Hull said an elderly landowner showed her where contractors had bulldozed through an irrigation line and cleared vegetation on his property.
"He has a boat ramp, and he had an irrigation line, and they dozed right through his property, severed his irrigation line," Hull said. "Now he can't get water up there, he can't withdraw water, and they destroyed all these trees, cut a huge swath through his property."
Hull said she later observed similar activity on two nearby properties and that two of the three affected landowners had received right-of-entry requests from the federal government but had not signed them.
"Neither one of them had signed," Hull said. "No one had been taken to court to condemn the property, and nobody's received compensation."
Hull said federal officials asserted that the land being cleared was already government property because it falls within a floodplain along the river.
"They come back and they say that anything in the flood plain along the entire length of the river is federal government property," Hull said.
Hull said the landowners possess deeds showing their property extends to the Rio Grande and questioned why right-of-entry requests had been sent if the land was already federally owned.
"Why did y'all send right of entry requests to the three people if it was your property?" Hull said. "That makes no sense."
Right-of-entry agreements are commonly used by the federal government to gain access to private land for surveys and other preliminary work associated with border wall construction. If landowners decline to grant access, the government can pursue condemnation proceedings through eminent domain.
The dispute centers on whether the land being cleared is private property requiring acquisition through right-of-entry agreements or eminent-domain proceedings, as landowners contend, or federal property that can be accessed without additional permission, as Border Patrol representatives told residents at the scene.
In a statement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said border wall construction in the agency's Laredo Sector is underway "in areas where CBP has acquired the proper real estate access and rights." The agency said border wall panel installation is expected to begin in the coming weeks.
Captain Andrew Treviño of the Zapata County Sheriff's Office said deputies responded to a request for assistance from the U.S. Border Patrol regarding a reported disturbance involving border wall construction personnel near San Ignacio.
"Upon arrival, deputies observed that the U.S. Border Patrol agents were already speaking with the involved parties," Treviño said.
Treviño said no arrests were made and no resistance was encountered. Hull said construction stopped when deputies arrived, and no further clearing occurred after the dozers were driven away.
Treviño said Border Patrol referred one of the involved parties to the International Boundary and Water Commission for additional assistance.
The commission is the binational agency that oversees boundary and water treaties between the United States and Mexico. An agency spokesperson referred questions about the dispute to CBP.
The activity near San Ygnacio comes as the Trump administration advances several border barrier projects across Texas.
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Webb and Zapata project would include approximately 108 miles of primary border barrier and 153 miles of waterborne barrier systems. The project could also include access and patrol roads, surveillance cameras, lighting, fiber-optic cables, utility shelters and other supporting infrastructure.
In December 2025, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem signed a waiver covering certain federal laws and regulations to expedite wall construction.
The Webb and Zapata proposal is one of several border infrastructure projects moving forward in Texas. In West Texas, where residents and advocacy groups have questioned reports that some wall plans were scaled back, current plans call for roughly 175 miles of steel bollard wall across portions of Hudspeth, Jeff Davis and Presidio counties, along with surveillance technology, vehicle barriers and road improvements in and around the Big Bend region.
The projects have generated opposition from landowners, environmental groups and local officials across the border region. In Laredo, city leaders and the Rio Grande International Study Center have raised concerns that proposed wall segments and buoy barriers could worsen flooding in neighborhoods along the Rio Grande.
During an April trip to Washington, D.C., Laredo City Councilmember Melissa Cigarroa urged federal officials to conduct additional studies before construction proceeds, citing concerns about flood risks to riverside communities. U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar has also asked federal officials to consider exceptions for projects in Laredo, Zapata County and the Big Bend region, citing concerns about flooding, drinking water and public lands.
Stephanie Valdez, an organizer with the No Border Wall Coalition in Laredo, said opponents from Big Bend, Zapata County, Webb County and other border communities have formed a coalition to share information and help residents keep track of wall and buoy projects moving forward in often remote stretches of the Texas-Mexico border.
"I think in Zapata County, because it's smaller, they see that this is not a popular issue and they're going to try to force it on us as much as they can," Valdez said.
Valdez said opponents have raised concerns about environmental impacts, property rights and public safety.
"I don't think that people are realizing the most important, which is human life and public safety," Valdez said.
Valdez said opponents also question whether additional wall construction is necessary given current border crossing trends.
"People assume that there's a border crisis when, in reality, apprehensions are at an all-time low," Valdez said. "This infrastructure just doesn't help, and it's not wanted."
Amerika Garcia Graywall, co-director of the binational environmental organization Frontera Federation, said she was alarmed by images and maps showing construction activity near a county-owned bird sanctuary along the Rio Grande.
"What was really disturbing was to see Customs and Border Patrol photographs and the maps showing how close they are to the bird sanctuary," Graywall said.
Hull said the sanctuary sits along the Rio Grande flyway, a migratory route used by hundreds of bird species that travel through South Texas each year.
"It's a beautiful little area. All kinds of birds. This area is in the Rio Grande flyway," Hull said.
Hull said construction activity was within feet of the sanctuary.
"If we can't stop this, that bird sanctuary will be no more," Hull said.
Hull said the fight over the wall has echoes of an earlier battle in San Ygnacio's history. She noted that the community successfully fought to avoid inundation when Falcon Dam was built in the 1950s, preserving historic structures that still stand today.
"San Ygnacio rose up and fought the government before back in the 1950s and they won," Hull said.
For now, Hull said residents are contacting attorneys and plan to return to the area to monitor activity as bulldozing continued Wednesday outside the disputed area.
"We can't just not do anything," Hull said. "We can't just say, 'oh well, they're going to do it.' You can't just let it happen, and we're not going to just let it happen."
