Overview
- Federal contractors this week began clearing vegetation and conducting survey and design work inside Big Bend National Park under a $1.7 billion task order to build roads, vehicle barriers and detection systems.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection says the work is limited to one new access road, improvements to existing roads, about 17 miles of lower-profile vehicle barriers and surveillance equipment and insists it is not building a 30-foot wall inside the park.
- The administration invoked a June 9 DHS waiver to speed the project by bypassing dozens of federal and state environmental and historic-preservation reviews, a step that conservationists and tribal advocates say was unlawful.
- A tribal nonprofit and a river outfitter filed a federal lawsuit seeking an injunction to stop work, and courts have so far declined to halt activity while litigation proceeds; dozens of local officials from both parties have demanded more consultation or a pause.
- Critics warn the construction will damage archaeological sites, wildlife habitat and river access and could harm the local tourism economy, and the park work is part of a broader multi‑billion dollar Big Bend sector buildout critics say is disproportionate given very low Border Patrol apprehensions in the area.