Conservation groups are sounding the alarm after President Donald Trump‘s administration moved to waive nearly 30 federal environmental laws to fast-track a 175-mile border wall through Texas‘ Big Bend region.
A notice in the Federal Register shows the Department of Homeland Security is hoping to bypass 28 laws to ‘ensure the expeditious construction of barriers and roads.’
The waivers include the Endangered Species Act, the Clean Water Act and the National Environmental Policy Act – key protections for wildlife, waterways and public lands.
If approved, the wall would run through the Big Bend area along the US-Mexico border, near Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park, and across desert terrain along the Rio Grande.
The National Parks Conservation Association quickly criticized the proposal.
Cary Dupuy, the group’s Texas regional director, called it ‘devastating.’
‘Building a border wall through Big Bend National Park would choke off vital wildlife migration routes, intensify flooding risks, and inflict irreparable damage to one of our country’s most iconic national parks,’ Dupuy said.
Dupuy was not alone in his criticism.
Conservation groups are sounding the alarm after President Donald Trump’s administration moved to waive nearly 30 federal environmental laws to fast-track a 175-mile border wall
President Donald Trump’s administration has moved to waive nearly 30 federal environmental laws to fast-track a 175-mile border wall through Texas’ Big Bend region
David Keller, an archaeologist in the region, called the barrier plans ‘the military industrialization of one of the last great, unspoiled places left in the United States.’
‘One of our most beloved national parks and the largest park in Texas will be scarred beyond repair,’ he told Inside Climate News.
Bob Krumenaker, who served as superintendent of Big Bend National Park from 2018 to 2023, said he supports stronger electronic border detection but warned that building a wall ‘would change the park irrevocably’.
He said a project of that size would require infrastructure the park lacks, including staging areas, roads, electricity and lighting.
Local officials said the federal government has not shared details of its plan, and that many residents and conservation advocates oppose a border wall.
‘Nobody wants this damn wall. It serves no purpose,’ Pecos County Judge Joe Shuster said, according to Dallas News. ‘It would destroy the beauty of Big Bend National Park.’
The Big Bend Sentinel reported the proposed corridor would stretch from near Fort Quitman outside Sierra Blanca to just upstream of Closed Canyon in Big Bend Ranch State Park.
The DHS said Tuesday that Parsons Government Services will manage construction, with completion expected by early 2028.
The Department of Homeland Security has signaled its intent to sidestep 28 regulations ‘in their entirety’ in order to ‘ensure the expeditious construction of barriers and roads,’ according to a filing in the Federal Register
A US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) spokesperson told Marfa Public Radio the contracts are part of the administration’s ‘Smart Wall’ plan and construction could begin ‘toward the end of the year.’
CBP said the system combines physical barriers with ‘detection technology’ to monitor border crossings.
In the filing, the Big Bend Sector is described as ‘an area of high illegal entry.’
However, arrests in the region have fallen sharply – from 11,823 in Fiscal Year 2023 to nearly 4,000 in Fiscal Year 2025, according to CBP data.
Statewide construction has also lagged. The Texas Tribune reported in June 2025 that just eight percent of the planned wall had been built, while the Texas Facilities Commission said 66.4 miles had been completed.
The DHS did not respond to repeated requests for comment on why it is seeking to waive the environmental laws.
Big Bend’s cliffs, river canyons and Chihuahuan Desert views draw visitors from around the world.
Dupuy said tourism brought in more than $60 million for nearby communities in 2024.
‘We should not risk this treasured place for the sake of a border wall, particularly when there are other options on the table,’ he said.
Dupuy said Big Bend National Park, Big Bend Ranch State Park and protected land across the Rio Grande in Mexico are part of one connected ecosystem.
The proposed wall would cut through the remote Big Bend sector along the US-Mexico border and extend across surrounding desert and mountain terrain
‘Dividing this pristine, irreplaceable desert would force residents and resource stewards to manage one side of the river at a time,’ Dupuy said.
‘Wildlife and communities on both sides of the wall would suffer, and nobody would be the winner here.’
He said the region’s harsh terrain already acts as a natural barrier and argued that surveillance technology would cause far less damage than miles of steel fencing.
The construction push comes as the federal government increases its presence along the southern border. Nearly a year ago, Marfa Public Radio reported a growing military presence in the region.
Meanwhile, Big Bend National Park has faced environmental challenges.
In late January, the park’s only hotel in the Chisos Basin closed due to water shortages.
Conservation groups warn that steel fencing, new roads and heavy equipment could disrupt wildlife, change flood patterns and permanently alter the landscape.
Federal officials have not explained how they would reduce environmental damage if the waivers are approved.
‘We need to look for border solutions that are as unique as our landscapes and communities,’ Dupuy said. ‘And we must ensure the solutions we find don’t destroy the national treasures we’ve committed to protecting.’
