U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett criticized the Trump administration’s decision to waive environmental protections for border infrastructure projects in and around Big Bend National Park, warning the move could permanently alter one of Texas’ most treasured landscapes.
In a statement posted Monday on social media, the Austin Democrat said the administration’s decision to bypass federal environmental laws for border-related roads and surveillance technology in the park “will change the very face of the park.”
“Trump’s decision to waive dozens of environmental protections in Big Bend National Park to construct destructive technologies and roads will change the very face of the park,” Doggett wrote.
The statement comes after the Trump administration issued a revised federal waiver allowing U.S. Customs and Border Protection to bypass environmental regulations for more than 100 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border in the Big Bend region, including Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park, according to reporting by Marfa Public Radio.
Federal officials have said the waiver is intended to speed construction of border infrastructure tied to the agency’s “Big Bend 4” project, which includes a mix of vehicle barriers, surveillance technology and patrol road upgrades. Customs and Border Protection has maintained it does not currently plan to build a 30-foot steel border wall inside either park.
Doggett argued opposition to the project extends beyond partisan politics.
“Texans across party lines oppose this project,” he wrote. “These waivers seek to silence opposition and let Trump greatly damage a true crown jewel of Texas.”
The congressman’s criticism adds to mounting opposition from environmental groups and former park officials, including six former superintendents of Big Bend National Park who recently urged federal officials not to waive environmental protections in the region.
The waiver comes as Customs and Border Protection prepares to begin construction on a separate steel border wall project in other parts of the Big Bend region outside the parks, according to previous reporting by Marfa Public Radio.
