{"id":71700,"date":"2026-08-29T08:33:19","date_gmt":"2026-08-29T08:33:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/71700\/"},"modified":"2026-08-29T08:33:19","modified_gmt":"2026-08-29T08:33:19","slug":"federal-judge-extends-pause-on-big-bend-border-security-construction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/71700\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal judge extends pause on Big Bend border security construction"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sign up for TPR Today<\/a>, Texas Public Radio’s newsletter that brings our top stories to your inbox each morning.<\/p>\n

SAN ANTONIO\u2014A federal judge in San Antonio has extended a temporary pause on new ground-disturbance tied to border security construction in and around Big Bend National Park while attorneys on both sides meet to develop a clearer picture of the project and its impacts.<\/p>\n

U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia heard arguments Friday in federal court on an emergency request by the People of La Junta for Preservation, members of the Lipan Apache community and a West Texas outdoor recreation business to halt construction.<\/p>\n

The plaintiffs argue the federal government lacks legal authority to carry out the construction in Big Bend National Park and that the project threatens archaeological, cultural and religious sites.<\/p>\n

After the hearing, the parties agreed to meet between now and Sept. 15. The court is scheduled to reconvene that day.<\/p>\n

State Sen. Roland Gutierrez, one of the attorneys representing the plaintiffs, said the agreement means there will be no new ground-disturbing activity during that period.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe government has agreed to not move any dirt-moving activities or earth-turning activities whatsoever between now and September the 15th. So that’s a big victory for these folks,\u201d said Gutierrez. \u201cIt’s my hope that as we move on in the course of the next few weeks, we can continue to put protections in place that keep this damn wall out of their backyards.\u201d<\/p>\n

The lawsuit challenges a June decision by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to waive dozens of federal and state laws to speed construction of border barriers across the Big Bend Sector.<\/p>\n

Among the laws waived were the National Environmental Policy Act, Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act, National Historic Preservation Act and Archaeological Resources Protection Act.<\/p>\n

But the plaintiffs say DHS did not waive 16 U.S.C. \u00a7 158, a federal statute that assigns the administration, protection and development of Big Bend National Park to the Secretary of the Interior and the National Park Service.<\/p>\n

They argue that the National Park Service’s authority remains intact and provides a legal basis for challenging construction in the park.<\/p>\n

A coalition of landowners, outdoor enthusiasts and business owners that say any work in Big Bend National Park would forever change the place often called “Texas’ gift to the nation.”<\/p>\n

The lawsuit also alleges the project could interfere with Indigenous religious practices and damage archaeological sites and other resources that cannot be restored once disturbed.<\/p>\n

The People of La Junta for Preservation has opposed construction because of its potential impact on sacred Indigenous sites and the Rio Grande.<\/p>\n

Christina Hernandez, the group’s founder and director, said the fight is about protecting land that has cultural and spiritual significance to Indigenous people.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are fighting the wall in court because K\u00f3nits\u0105\u0105\u00ed\u00ed \u2014 the river that has carried our people, our prayers, and our ancestors for thousands of years \u2014 is not waiting for someone else to save her, and neither are we.\u201d<\/p>\n

Construction in Big Bend National Park had already been temporarily paused as of the hearing. Federal officials have said the pause would allow U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott to conduct an on-the-ground evaluation of the project.<\/p>\n

The dispute extends beyond the national park. The proposed border infrastructure includes portions of the Big Bend region where state and private lands are also at issue.<\/p>\n

Opposition to the project has included Democratic and Republican elected officials, conservationists, business owners and residents who say construction could damage archaeological resources, wildlife habitat and the region’s tourism economy.<\/p>\n

David Keller, an archaeologist and historic preservationist who testified during Friday’s hearing, was questioned by government attorneys about the importance of preserving archaeological sites in the Big Bend region.<\/p>\n

Keller said the current pause and promised consultation are not enough to address his concerns about the project.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat doesn’t stop the project, and nothing short of that is going to appease me, or really any of us. It’s just an egregious overreach of the federal government. It’s the loss of a national treasure for optics, for border barrier optics. It really actually does not give us any additional protection.\u201d<\/p>\n

The parties are expected to meet before Sept. 15, when Judge Garcia is scheduled to hear the case again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sign up for TPR Today, Texas Public Radio’s newsletter that brings our top stories to your inbox each…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":71701,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[4],"tags":[8,9,7],"class_list":["post-71700","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-top-stories","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-stories"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@news\/117177876656405831","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71700","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71700"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71700\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/71701"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71700"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71700"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71700"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}