Big Bend landowners sue to halt Texas border wall construction

A coalition of 230 landowners, ranchers, and business owners, represented by the nonprofit Conserve Big Bend, has filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., to halt border wall construction in the Big Bend region of Texas.

The lawsuit targets the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and top officials including DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott. Plaintiffs argue that the federal government is improperly using waivers to bypass environmental, cultural, and historic preservation laws. They contend that the administration’s designation of the Big Bend Sector as an area of ‘high illegal entry’ is inaccurate, noting that the region accounts for less than 1.5% of total apprehensions on the southwest border over the last five years.

The legal challenge comes as the Trump administration ramps up a $46 billion initiative to install 30-foot steel bollard walls, vehicle barriers, and surveillance technology along approximately 2,000 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border. The plaintiffs seek an injunction to prevent the seizure of private property and to protect the landscape and heritage of the remote region.