Latest news with #borderwall
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Scientist makes astonishing discovery after observing US-Mexico border wall with motion-sensing cameras: 'Beautiful region'
Scientist makes astonishing discovery after observing US-Mexico border wall with motion-sensing cameras: 'Beautiful region' Much has been reported about the border wall between Mexico and the United States. It is designed to separate the two nations and prevent people from passing between the countries unchecked. However, a study has outlined the large and unintended consequences of the wall on nature and wildlife in the area. What's happening? As Vox detailed, the border wall in the southwest United States covering parts of Arizona and New Mexico also cuts through a swath of rugged natural terrain. The area is home to a diverse ecosystem of plants and animals that have been heavily impacted by the wall. Ganesh Marín, who was a doctoral researcher at the University of Arizona, set up 85 motion-sensor cameras in the region. The cameras captured various species, including ocelots, jaguars, beavers, and black bears. All in all, Marín ended up with about 21,000 clips. Why is this study concerning? The videos suggest the animals are avoiding the wall as much as possible and changing their behaviors in response. This is frustrating because the animals need to be able to wander the area freely to find water, food, and mates. Unfortunately, this is not the only way the wall has caused a problem for local wildlife. Last year, when fires swept through parts of Texas, frogs, snakes, and other animals close to the border couldn't escape because they were blocked by a section of the border wall. Ecosystems are already under threat because of rising global temperatures. According to the United Nations, many animals have already lost their habitats due to changing climates as well as the overdevelopment of land. The border wall only exacerbates an already growing problem. What's being done to protect wildlife? One way for people to fight back is to take local action in their own communities to ensure wildlife and ecosystems are protected. Another way is to vote for candidates who recognize the importance of these environmental issues, regardless of their side of the political aisle. As Marín noted, "Amazing wildlife is present in the borderlands due to the binational efforts to protect and restore the flow of life between both countries. We should not define this beautiful region and the creatures that roam by the existence of an imposed division." Do you think America is in a housing crisis? Definitely Not sure No way Only in some cities Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet. Solve the daily Crossword
New York Times
12-07-2025
- Business
- New York Times
ICE Set to Vastly Expand Its Reach With New Funds
Thousands of new deportation agents deployed into American cities. A doubling of detention space to hold tens of thousands of immigrants before they are expelled. Miles of new border wall, along with surveillance towers equipped with artificial intelligence. That is the expansive plan that President Trump's top immigration officials now intend to enact after months of struggling to overcome staffing shortages and logistical hurdles that have stymied his pledge to record the most deportations in American history. After weeks of pressuring members of Congress into supporting his signature domestic policy legislation, Mr. Trump has secured an extraordinary injection of funding for his immigration agenda — $170 billion, the vast majority of which will go to the Department of Homeland Security over four years. The annual budget of Immigration and Customs Enforcement alone will spike from about $8 billion to roughly $28 billion, making it the highest funded law enforcement agency in the federal government. The new resources will fuel an intense initiative to recruit as many as 10,000 new agents who will have a presence in cities like New York City and Los Angeles, and throughout the United States. And the money comes as a windfall for private prison companies, who have already rushed to pitch the administration on new contracts to run detention facilities. 'You're going to see immigration enforcement on a level you've never seen it before,' Tom Homan, Mr. Trump's border czar, said in an interview. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
E&E News
10-07-2025
- Politics
- E&E News
Greens sue Trump admin over border wall waivers
Environmental groups sued the Trump administration Wednesday over the use of environmental waivers to accelerate border wall construction, saying the move lacks constitutional authority and would cause permanent damage to endangered species' habitat. The planned 27 miles of new border wall would slice through the San Rafael Valley in Arizona, an ecological hot spot and habitat for jaguars that migrate from Mexico, as well as other animals. The lawsuit — filed in the U.S. District Court in Tucson against the Department of Homeland Security, its Secretary Kristi Noem and U.S. Customs and Border Protection — says the administration is bypassing environmental laws in favor of fast-tracking the wall's construction. 'The Trump administration is unconstitutionally running roughshod over our bedrock environmental protections to build his cruel, senseless border wall,' Jean Su, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity representing the case, said in a news release. 'Trump's dangerous obsession with walls and militarization will slash a permanent scar across one of the most biodiverse regions on the continent.' Advertisement In June, Noem issued environmental waivers allowing the DHS to bypass the Endangered Species Act, National Environmental Policy Act and Clean Water Act.
E&E News
08-07-2025
- Politics
- E&E News
Enviros warn fast-tracked border wall would devastate jaguars
New border wall construction in southwest Arizona could fracture key habitat for jaguars and other endangered species, says a report released Monday. The San Rafael Valley, a grassland basin in Arizona's southern borderlands, is a vital wildlife corridor for the elusive jaguar, according to the analysis by the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group. The valley is also the prime location targeted by the Trump administration for accelerated build-out of new sections of wall, which are meant to keep undocumented immigrants from crossing into the United States from Mexico. In June, the Department of Homeland Security awarded a $309 million contract to Fisher Sand & Gravel to build 27 miles of border wall near Tucson. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem issued three environmental waivers to hasten construction, allowing the projects to bypass laws like the National Environmental Policy Act, Endangered Species Act and Clean Water Act. Advertisement DHS said in a news release that projects done under waivers are 'critical steps' to secure the southern border.
Telegraph
05-07-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
America is now the deportation nation
Ever since he glided down a golden escalator more than a decade ago to announce his bid for the White House, Donald Trump's political career has been defined by immigration. Identifying the widening chasm between elite consensus and public opinion on the issue, he was denounced as a 'populist' for refusing to accept that the illegal entry of millions of people into the United States was somehow an economic and political inevitability. When his Republican rivals offered amnesties, he offered a border wall. But for all the Democratic hysterics, Trump's first term was mostly 'business as usual' on immigration. The border wall was only partially built, 'Big Farm-a' continued to employ off-the-books illegal labour, and deportation levels remained stable. That's no critique of the president: genuine action against mass migration was always going to require a total rewiring of the system, the creation of a 'deportation state'. Well, look out America, because your deportation state is nearly here. Among all of the huge changes that will be brought on by the passing of Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill', the allocation of funding to immigration enforcement may perhaps be the most extraordinary. In the next four years, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) will end up with a budget larger than the US Marshals Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration – and the FBI. Detention capabilities will also be greatly expanded, which may allow ICE to approximately double the number of migrants it can detain. That's not even considering the money allocated to buying more planes for deportation and vastly expanding training and employment for specialised officers. There will be more money allocated to ICE than to any federal enforcement agency in America's history. The logistics of the deportation state go beyond mere funding. In the first 100 days of the administration, illegal border encounters totally collapsed. This trend has continued, now resulting in eerily quiet border towns and the seeming disappearance of undocumented workers in local hospitality and agricultural work. This disappearance is only partly thanks to the work of ICE, with merely the threat of being rounded up and deported to unfamiliar climes – El Salvador, South Sudan – apparently enough to push thousands of migrants into 'self-deporting', to borrow a term from the glossy Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem. Up-and-coming Republican state officials also know that the best way to boost their Maga credentials is to be seen helping the president in his efforts. James Uthmeier, the Florida State Attorney General, won immense credit with the administration for his role in organising the creation of a new deportation holding centre dubbed 'Alligator Alcatraz', constructed and put into operation in a manner of days. Not every Republican is happy, of course. The old GOP business establishment has been lobbying to pause raids on farms, hotels and restaurants (with some success – ICE de-proritised these locations for raids a few months ago). But they know that any more overt displays of disloyalty will be harshly punished. The negative response to the expansion of deportation efforts can be just as useful to the administration: images from the recent LA riots, with protesters waving giant Mexican flags next to burnt-out cop cars, seemed to show the public precisely how committed to America some recent entrants to their nation really felt. Public opinion will be vital to the ongoing success of the deportation state, with Trump betting that citizens won't be too unhappy with some mistakes being made if the broader effort appears effective. So far, that bet seems to be paying off. There will be chaos and disruption, and no doubt a fair share of simple policy failures. But the scope of Trump's ambition on mass migration can no longer be questioned. The work of figures like Stephen Miller has sought to put intellectual ballast behind the president's rhetoric and actions on immigration. Yes, they want to restore borders, but also to strip away arguably outdated ideas like birthright citizenship and challenge the reflexive acceptance of multiculturalism over integration. There will be no going back, no way of treating 2016 as an aberration as in 2020. This is Maga institutionalising itself.
