The Trump administration is accelerating plans for new border barriers along hundreds of miles of the Texas-Mexico border, prompting protests, property disputes and lawsuits from landowners and environmental groups.
In Webb and Zapata counties, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has proposed approximately 108 miles of primary wall and 153 miles of floating barriers in the Rio Grande. The plan could affect Laredo neighborhoods, ranches, parks and the historic community of San Ygnacio.
Residents near San Ygnacio say contractors have already cleared vegetation on riverfront property without completed access agreements. Federal officials maintain that the work is occurring legally on land managed by the International Boundary and Water Commission. Opponents have begun monitoring construction sites, organizing rallies and documenting possible harm to private property and wildlife habitat.
CBP says the barriers are needed to deter unlawful crossings and drug trafficking and to give Border Patrol agents more time to respond. The agency says engineering studies and coordination with international water officials will help prevent the structures from worsening flooding or obstructing the Rio Grande.
Resistance is also growing in West Texas. The Department of Homeland Security has waived numerous environmental and historic-preservation laws to expedite barriers, patrol roads and surveillance infrastructure across the Big Bend region.
Inside Big Bend National Park, the current proposal includes about 17 miles of four-foot vehicle barriers and improvements to remote patrol roads, rather than a continuous 30-foot pedestrian wall. Taller walls remain possible elsewhere in the region.
The Center for Biological Diversity, Friends of the Ruidosa Church and a Terlingua-area landowner have expanded a federal lawsuit challenging the waivers. They argue that Congress improperly allowed the executive branch to suspend laws protecting national parks, endangered species, cultural sites and the Rio Grande.
Opposition has crossed party lines. Landowners, environmental organizations, river guides and some county officials and Republican sheriffs argue that Big Bend’s cliffs and desert already form a natural barrier.
Guests:
Laiken Jordahl is a national public lands advocate with the Center for Biological Diversity.
Trcia Cortez is the executive director of the Rio Grande International Study Center.
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