Border

As an urban-industrial area, the border is subjected to a great deal of air, water and soil pollution and to its consequences on health and quality of life. But unlike other places, the border is facing the additional environmental burden of an ever-growing border security infrastructure that continues to distress previously untouched areas.

This security infrastructure includes the border wall, lesser fences, access roads, night lighting, sensors and cameras, surveillance towers, vehicular traffic, helicopters, foot traffic, and more.

Many of the wild areas that lay on the path of the border security apparatus are deemed protected* and provide habitat for hundreds of imperiled species but that affords little relief on the ground. In fact, the government waived 36 environmental laws to be able to build the border wall**. Here are some of the deleterious effects of border enforcement, followed by some recommendations to mitigate them (thanks to Defenders of Wildlife and the Sierra Club for sharing information). Feel free to tell your elected officials all about it.

-Direct damage to vegetation and soil, such as trampling, cutting trees and digging, fragments and damages wildlife habitat and food sources. It also can introduce exotic and invasive species to the fragile border ecosystems. 

-Obstacles to animal mobility, like the border wall, have devastating effects on wildlife migration routes, mating, and sustenance. It also creates great pressures on endangered species. The following photos (courtesy of Sierra Club) illustrate this point. (Customs and Border Protection say they have installed gates for animals to cross but environmentalists say the "gates" are only big enough for cats and they are only at one spot in the Rio Grande Valley.) 

 

-Erosion and sedimentation occur when border construction goes on without erosion control. In the picture below (by Defenders of Wildlife), we can see that the area around the fence is bare. No efforts have been to replant. Loose dirt will impairs nearby water quality and stream habitat. For instance, a California dirt berm was built as a foundation for parts of the wall, but the dirt from this berm washes out into a nearby river estuary reserve, increasing sediment levels and threatening the fragile ecosystem.

 

-Impeded drainage due to the new barriers poses a risk to humans. The wall in Nogales acted as a dam in 2008, preventing drainage and flooding one side (Photo by Sierra Club below).

 

Recommendations:

• Halt all harmful border fence and road building projects.
• Favor virtual fences such as unmanned aerial surveillance vehicles, motion sensors, laser barriers and infrared cameras, whenever possible.
• When using barriers, use wildlife-friendly barriers (like vehicular barriers,) and build sufficient wildlife crossing points.
• Provide environmental training to Customs and Border Protection agents.
• Coordinate with CBP, National Park Service, National Parks and Wildlife, etc., to design an environmental protocol for the border and engage in ongoing consulting and communication.
• Engage with environmental groups along the border.
• Find environmentally-sound ways to get rid of invasive species along the Rio Grande.
• Analyze both direct and indirect environmental impacts of border enforcement.
• Develop a comprehensive monitoring and mitigation plan.
• Develop a habitat recovery plan for damaged areas.

* Barry M. Goldwater Range, Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge, Tohono O’odham Nation lands, Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, Otay Mountain Wilderness Area San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area, and Lower Rio Grande National Wildlife Refuge tracts.

**While the government ran out of money and the wall plan is dormant, there are many plans in the administration and in Congress to fund the continuation of its construction.