In early August 2026, federal contractors authorized by Customs and Border Protection began bulldozing sensitive habitat near Santa Elena Canyon inside Big Bend National Park, clearing ground for border barriers and patrol roads as part of a $46.5 billion border infrastructure expansion.
Heavy machinery cut through desert shrubs and cleared land where willow and mesquite stood, leaving pink ribbons marking the construction path. CBP plans vehicle barriers and patrol roads across the park, including remote terrain such as Mariscal Mountain that would require extensive dynamite blasting.
The strongest objection on the record comes from someone who ran the place. A former superintendent of Big Bend said this is “the least active place in the country for illegal border crossings” and called the project “purely political,” saying it “risks destroying one of the nation's greatest places.”
About 150 people gathered in protest, some standing in the Rio Grande holding signs reading “don't bulldoze my church” and “don't tread on Big Bend.”
The case against the work is not that border infrastructure is illegitimate. It is the mismatch between the stated purpose and the location: the park is among the least-trafficked crossing areas on the southern border, and the terrain being cleared cannot be restored.
On September 14, 2026, Texas landowners sued the federal government over the Big Bend border wall plans. They argue the region does not meet the requirements for the waivers the government issued, which determined the Big Bend Sector to be an area of “high illegal entry.” The Big Bend Sector saw fewer than 1.5 percent of apprehensions on the southwest border, NPR reported, and the lawsuit says it tallied the fewest, just 1.3 percent, among nine sectors. More than $7 billion has been awarded for Big Bend Sector barrier projects, and according to the group Conserve Big Bend, 65 percent of the 609 miles of the planned project is on private property. A pause on work in the park is due to expire September 30.
Some of the objections come from the president's own voters. “As a two-time Trump voter, you know the border's secure. Thank you, thank you, President Trump. You've secured the border, but now let it go,” said Laura Allen, a Val Verde County rancher. DHS and CBP did not immediately respond to requests for comment.