Travis Bubenik

U.S. Customs and Border Protection this week quietly updated its "Smart Wall" map to remove two "primary border barrier system" projects in the Big Bend area, including one recently slated for Big Bend National Park. Other projects are still listed for parts of Presidio, Jeff Davis and Hudspeth counties.

Barring a veto from Gov. Greg Abbott, these will soon become law in Texas.

Republican state Rep. Brooks Landgraf proposed the ban after a fire at an Odessa area chemical storage facility that allegedly filled a nearby neighborhood with "black sludge." House Bill 3866 is now on Gov. Greg Abbott's desk.