NPR: In West Texas, an unlikely alliance stands against extending the border wall
A coalition of people across the political spectrum has come together to oppose the construction of a border wall in Texas' Big Bend. The U.S. government has waived more than two dozen laws to expedite construction along nearly 175 miles of rural West Texas, an area that's one of the last untouched frontier landscapes. The administration plans to build 30-foot-tall steel fences, patrol roads, flood lighting and surveillance systems. NPR reports that elected local officials, private land owners, wildlife biologists and more argue that the wall is unnecessary. They worry about the potential harm to the environment, wildlife, Indigenous sites and the region's famously dark skies. The wall also threatens to disrupt the $56-million tourism industry in the Big Bend.
