Border wall projects could soon move forward in the remote Big Bend region of West Texas as part of the Trump administration's sweeping "Smart Wall" plan for the entire U.S.-Mexico border, according to officials and local residents who say construction firms have started contacting people in the area about the project.
The Big Bend Sentinel first reported this month that local landowners have recently been contacted about leasing land for physical wall construction staging areas. Sources that spoke to Marfa Public Radio in recent days indicated that companies are also looking for land to stage "man camps" for construction crews in Presidio, Marfa and Van Horn.
A map of the administration's "Smart Wall" plan shows multiple border wall projects planned for the Big Bend area — spanning from Fort Quitman, outside of Sierra Blanca, to Colorado Canyon in Big Bend Ranch State Park, roughly 175 miles. The project is broken up into three segments.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has described the "Smart Wall" as a system that "combines steel barriers, waterborne barriers, patrol roads, lights, cameras, and advanced detection technology."
A CBP spokesperson told Marfa Public Radio in October that in areas of the Border Patrol's Big Bend Sector "where terrain act as a natural barrier, CBP is planning to deploy alien detection technology."
Still, federal officials have not detailed where exactly physical barriers will or will not be built in the region.
CBP spokesperson Landon Hutchens told Marfa Public Radio on Tuesday that the entire 517-mile stretch of the Big Bend Sector's border with Mexico is scheduled to receive new infrastructure or upgrades — including areas within Big Bend Ranch State Park and Big Bend National Park.
"Depending on terrain and operational requirements, each area may receive any combination of barrier installation, technology deployment, and road improvements," he said.
Hutchens said construction could last several years.
"Contracts for these projects are expected to be awarded in the coming weeks and months, with various phases of construction anticipated to commence toward the end of the year, upon completion of land acquisition, and continue over several years," he said.
The construction firms' recent communications with locals indicate a sizable project in the works.
"It's a real deal," James King, a ranch real estate agent with King Land and Water, told Marfa Public Radio. "We've always thought it was kind of like a concept that might happen, that 'Surely they would never do that. It's ridiculous. Why would they?' And suddenly, bam, here they are."
King said landowners he represents in Presidio County have recently been contacted by companies known to have received federal contracts for border wall construction in the past. The people interviewed for this story said they were aware of at least two companies, Kiewit Corporation and Barnard Inc., looking to mobilize in the area.
John Kennedy, Executive Director of the Presidio Municipal Development District (PMDD), a local economic development group, said an official representative from Barnard Inc., a company out of Bozeman, Montana reached out to him in early February about staging crews of 500 people on PMDD industrial park land. Barnard has previously been awarded billions of dollars in federal contracts for border wall building in other parts of the U.S.
Kennedy said the industrial park is reserved for local economic development initiatives, like geothermal energy development, and will not be made available to any companies associated with building the border wall.
He said he plans to present a resolution to the PMDD board as well as a notice to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem reaffirming their core government function to stimulate economic growth and plans to document "potential interference and compensable impacts arising from federal border barrier construction activities."
Local elected officials react to border wall plans
Presidio County Judge Jose Portillo – the county's top local elected official – said he has heard from several landowners who have been approached about the project. Portillo said he has personally fielded calls from companies, primarily project engineers, who are asking about permitting requirements and existing infrastructure in the area.
For example, Portillo said, he has been asked about the weight limit on Farm to Market roads, because trucks will be carrying up to 80,000 pounds worth of materials.
"They'll call and they'll say, 'What would be the requirements if I wanted to set up an RV park?' And where do you have three phase electricity? Is there natural gas available? Is there water available?'" he said.
Portillo said he has not yet seen a request for proposals from the federal government for a border wall project in Presidio County and no federal agencies have reached out to him about the wall. He said he has also not received any timelines yet, but is aware the current administration is looking to move fairly quickly.
Given the geographic features of the Big Bend, Portillo said he hopes the federal government will fully consider technological solutions before pursuing a traditional steel wall.
" The terrain here would be very, very, very difficult," he said. "It's one thing building up a wall on a flat surface that has no water, versus the Rio Grande and all its dips, turns, ups, downs, formations."
Presidio Mayor John Ferguson said he has not yet received any direct communication from construction companies or the federal government about a border wall coming to his town, but that he is vehemently against the idea.
" With every fiber of my being I am absolutely against the border wall ever being constructed here in Presidio or anywhere nearby," Ferguson said. "If there's any way I can oppose it through whatever means I'm going to strongly consider it."
Ferguson said the wall just doesn't seem needed, and took issue with miles of razor wire CBP put up along the border in Presidio this fall, calling it "a blight."
Along the Rio Grande near the tiny town of Redford, local river guide Charlie Angell is concerned he and his neighbor's riverfront homes are at risk. Angell said no one has contacted him about being in the path of the wall, and he has no idea what to expect moving forward.
" Do I just walk out of my door in the morning with a cup of coffee and there's a bulldozer in my yard?" he said.
While the federal government could try to seize private property for the project, many Texas landowners have pushed back on border wall projects in recent years, as the Texas Tribune has reported.
Residents of Presidio and the smaller border communities of Candelaria, Ruidosa and Redford wouldn't be the only ones impacted by a border wall. Thousands of visitors that stream through the area to see the picturesque River Road and traverse trails like the Hoodoos in Big Bend Ranch State Park would no longer encounter a pristine landscape that is a source of pride for many Texans.
A spokesperson from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department told Marfa Public Radio that the agency "has not received a request from the federal government for any border-barrier infrastructure at Big Bend Ranch State Park." Park superintendent Cody Edwards said that contractors, however, have reached out to him.
A spokesperson for the Texas General Land Office, which oversees many state-owned land parcels along the border in West Texas, said in a statement the agency "has not been contacted by the federal government" about border wall building on GLO land in Presidio or Hudspeth counties. Still, the spokesperson said Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham "stands ready to aid the Trump Administration and Governor Abbott in securing our southern border to ensure Texas families and our communities are safeguarded."
In the Big Bend, the Rio Grande serves as an important stop over for migratory birds and other wildlife, and as a recreational resource for locals and visitors. It is unclear how the river — already battling the effects of human intervention and climate change — would be impacted by the addition of border wall infrastructure. As Inside Climate News has reported, the part of the river from Ft. Quitman to Presidio, dubbed the "Forgotten Reach," frequently runs dry due to damming upstream, and potential restoration efforts have largely fallen by the wayside.
Border security lighting accompanying the project could also impact the Greater Big Bend International Dark Sky Reserve.
CBP's Smart Wall map currently shows a "technology only" project planned for the entire stretch of southern border in Big Bend National Park.
In South Texas, park land is under threat of being bifurcated. Advocates are currently calling on lawmakers — who have to pass a new homeland security funding bill by February 13 — to restore protections for the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park and a historic chapel. TPWD has previously warned that a border wall would effectively close Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park, a world-renowned birding destination.
The border wall is being fast-tracked due to unprecedented federal efforts — the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" allocated $46.5 billion for border wall construction. In October, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem published a slew of notices in the federal register, including one for the Big Bend border sector, waiving contracting and procurement laws.
Environmental and public health laws have been waived by the Trump administration in South Texas to allow for a border wall to be built on the National Wildlife Refuge. The waivers apply to all federal, state and private land, according to the Center for Biological Diversity. It appears the administration has not waived environmental regulations in the Big Bend area so far.
The recent federal notice waiving contracting and procurement laws stated that the Big Bend sector is "an area of high illegal entry." But, according to a CBP December press release, apprehensions have declined 74% from two years ago. Historically, this rugged and remote desert region has seen among the lowest levels of smuggling activity along the U.S. border with Mexico.
Republican U.S. House Rep. Tony Gonzales, whose district runs from San Antonio through the Big Bend region to El Paso, did not respond to a request for comment about the prospect of a border wall coming to the Big Bend. Gov. Greg Abbott's office did not respond to a specific inquiry about the matter either, but expressed broad support for the Trump administration's actions related to border security.
"Governor Abbott fully supports using every tool and strategy to aid in the Trump Administration's deterrence of illegal immigrants attempting to make the illegal and dangerous trek across the southern border," said Press Secretary Andrew Mahaleris.
Disclosure: King Land and Water is an underwriter of Marfa Public Radio. Underwriters are not involved in the newsroom's editorial decision-making.
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