The Trump administration announced Monday it is temporarily halting border construction in Big Bend National Park in southern Texas while Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott conducts what he called a personal, on-the-ground evaluation of the site.
CBP pauses Big Bend National Park border construction for on-site review
The Trump administration announced Monday it is temporarily halting border construction in Big Bend National Park in southern Texas while Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott conducts what he called a personal, on-the-ground evaluation of the site.
Scott announced the pause on X, stating he would spend the next couple of days listening to local leadership, community members, and stakeholders to address what he described as 'real' national security threats while protecting the park. CBP did not respond to questions about how long the pause would last or provide details on who Scott would meet.
Congress provided the Trump administration $46 billion to build a wall stretching from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico. Scott has said he expects the first layer of the wall to be completed by the end of next year. The administration has waived numerous regulations to speed construction along the roughly 2,000-mile border.
Earlier this year, CBP backed away from plans to build a 30-foot-tall bollard wall through Big Bend National Park and an adjacent state park to the west, but continued pursuing other measures including a new road, lights, car-stopping barriers, and buried fiber-optic cables. Last week, bulldozers were observed clearing land at the park; the Department of Homeland Security said on X at the time that the activity was related to 'survey and design work.'
Opposition to the construction has come from Democratic and Republican sheriffs in the region, former national park officials, local residents, some Texas elected officials, Native American groups, a small Texas town concerned about its levee system, and a Catholic archdiocese in the El Paso area. Critics argue that the rugged and remote terrain of the Big Bend region already deters migrants and smugglers, and that border crossings there have historically been lower than in other areas and have dropped further over the past two years.
- The source does not state how long the construction pause will last.
- The source does not identify the specific individuals or organizations Scott is scheduled to meet with during his visit.
- The source does not state whether Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin confirmed Abbott's account of their conversation or the commitment Abbott attributed to him.
- The source does not specify what damage, if any, has already been caused by construction activity in the park.
- The source does not state the current status of the lawsuit filed by the Center for Biological Diversity against Homeland Security.
- The source does not establish whether the pause applies to all border-related activity in the area or only certain project components.
Read the original at France 24