Rewriting biological history: Trump border wall puts wildlife at risk
Lamentable news that is not fake
Lamentable news that is not fake
Border wall between U.S. and Mexico will have terrible effects for wildlife
- Thread starter carlos55
- Start date
I have long opposed the border wall for this very reason. It has been proposed for many years but nothing ever happened (except small sections adjacent to cities). Now I fear with Trump and a Republican controlled Congress it could happen. However, later this year several states will have elections for Congress and there is a feeling that Republicans might lose their majority hold.
(I realize that a few ZooChat members are very sensitive to political discussions like this, so let me make two qualifying statements. First, this is an environmental/wildlife issue so it definitely has a place on the forum. Second, my voter registration is Independent so I am not promoting one party over the other.)
(I realize that a few ZooChat members are very sensitive to political discussions like this, so let me make two qualifying statements. First, this is an environmental/wildlife issue so it definitely has a place on the forum. Second, my voter registration is Independent so I am not promoting one party over the other.)
Here is another thread on the topic: Endangered Jaguar at Crux of New Border-Wall Fight
This new article talks broadly about democrat Joe Biden's foreign policy if he wins the November 2020 presidential election. However the key point for this thread is at the very end of the article. Scroll down to the final bullet point on Latin America where it says Biden will "halt all new construction of the southern border wall".
Biden eyes major foreign policy shifts if he wins
This new article talks broadly about democrat Joe Biden's foreign policy if he wins the November 2020 presidential election. However the key point for this thread is at the very end of the article. Scroll down to the final bullet point on Latin America where it says Biden will "halt all new construction of the southern border wall".
Biden eyes major foreign policy shifts if he wins
Here is a relevant article about how this border wall would affect the ecosystem in Quitobaquito Springs, located in Organ Pipe National Monument and home to threatened and endangered taxa such as the Sonoyta mud turtle (Kinosternon sonoriense longifemorale) and Quitobaquito/Sonoyta pupfish (Cyprinodon eremus). I have visited Organ Pipe National Monument and hope to go back again, with the intention of finding and photographing these species.
Scientists: Border wall construction wreaking havoc at Quitobaquito Springs
Scientists: Border wall construction wreaking havoc at Quitobaquito Springs
I meant to say Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, not Organ Pipe National Monument. Pardon my digression, but Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is the only place in the United States where Organ pipe cactus (Stenocereus thurberi) grow wild. I actually have an organ pipe cactus in a pot on my apartment's back deck. Last time I was in organ pipe cactus, I was parked in a spot within the monument and I searched for the nearest gasoline station in my GPS, and the nearest one was actually over the border in the Mexican state of Sonora, but luckily I had enough gasoline in my truck to get me to Ajo, Pima County, Arizona which is the nearest city to the monument.
A wildlife refuge under siege at the border.
During the fall of 2019, the Department of Homeland Security began pumping large amounts of water from a southern Arizona aquifer to mix concrete for the Trump administration’s border wall. The aquifer is an essential water source for the San Bernardino National Wildlife Refuge, so when the pumping escalated, U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials watched helplessly as the water levels at several ponds — the main habitat for the endangered fish at this Sonoran Desert refuge — dropped “precipitously.”
A wildlife refuge under siege at the border
During the fall of 2019, the Department of Homeland Security began pumping large amounts of water from a southern Arizona aquifer to mix concrete for the Trump administration’s border wall. The aquifer is an essential water source for the San Bernardino National Wildlife Refuge, so when the pumping escalated, U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials watched helplessly as the water levels at several ponds — the main habitat for the endangered fish at this Sonoran Desert refuge — dropped “precipitously.”
A wildlife refuge under siege at the border
Here is another relevant article from Defenders of Wildlife.
"The Owl and the Bear: A Wildlife Tragedy Unfolding on the Texas-Mexico Border
The owlet was found on the ground, a ball of gray and white fuzz nestled near the cut tree that had been its home. Border wall construction equipment had just moved through the area in western Starr County, Texas, clearing a swath of the forest growing near the Rio Grande downriver from Falcon International Reservoir. The Department of Homeland Security had chopped down and was reducing to mulch an area more than 150 feet wide and miles long, the footprint for a 30-foot-tall border wall, patrol road and enforcement zone. Workers found an Eastern screech owl among the debris and turned it over to a wildlife rehab facility. No one knows if other chicks perished in the destruction, but screech owls can lay up to six eggs per brood."
The Owl and the Bear: A Wildlife Tragedy Unfolding on the Texas-Mexico Border
"The Owl and the Bear: A Wildlife Tragedy Unfolding on the Texas-Mexico Border
The owlet was found on the ground, a ball of gray and white fuzz nestled near the cut tree that had been its home. Border wall construction equipment had just moved through the area in western Starr County, Texas, clearing a swath of the forest growing near the Rio Grande downriver from Falcon International Reservoir. The Department of Homeland Security had chopped down and was reducing to mulch an area more than 150 feet wide and miles long, the footprint for a 30-foot-tall border wall, patrol road and enforcement zone. Workers found an Eastern screech owl among the debris and turned it over to a wildlife rehab facility. No one knows if other chicks perished in the destruction, but screech owls can lay up to six eggs per brood."
The Owl and the Bear: A Wildlife Tragedy Unfolding on the Texas-Mexico Border
Here is a great relevant video from Vox discussing the threats to biodiversity that a southern border wall would have.
Here is another relevant article;
"Border wildlife cameras show animals facing 'completely unprecedented' barrier
While contractors build a 30-foot-tall steel border wall southeast of Tucson, wildlife advocates are racing to document where animals cross the border most often and hoping federal officials will consider taking down sections of wall that block those corridors.
When the new wall projects are finished in Cochise County, they will seal off nearly 75 miles of the border to animals larger than a rabbit, despite that area being the home or migratory route of mountain lions, deer, bear and numerous other species. Where sections of the new wall are in place, wildlife advocates already have seen javelina, bobcats, and other animals spend hours struggling fruitlessly to find a way through the wall."
Border wildlife cameras show animals facing 'completely unprecedented' barrier
"Border wildlife cameras show animals facing 'completely unprecedented' barrier
While contractors build a 30-foot-tall steel border wall southeast of Tucson, wildlife advocates are racing to document where animals cross the border most often and hoping federal officials will consider taking down sections of wall that block those corridors.
When the new wall projects are finished in Cochise County, they will seal off nearly 75 miles of the border to animals larger than a rabbit, despite that area being the home or migratory route of mountain lions, deer, bear and numerous other species. Where sections of the new wall are in place, wildlife advocates already have seen javelina, bobcats, and other animals spend hours struggling fruitlessly to find a way through the wall."
Border wildlife cameras show animals facing 'completely unprecedented' barrier
Here is another relevant article
"Footage shows Further Border Destruction in Arizona Wilderness
Contractors are shown blasting Guadalupe Canyon, endangering potential jaguar habitat
As border wall construction continues along the U.S.-Mexico border, more and more landscapes are being bulldozed and blasted to create even ground for building. Much of the border area in eastern Arizona and western New Mexico is extremely rugged, mountainous terrain – ideal habitat for wildlife.
These efforts were again documented earlier this week near Guadalupe Canyon in the Peloncillo Mountains of Arizona. Contractors from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have been shown blasting the side of mountains in order to clear a path.
“The complete devastation of this pristine wilderness is heartbreaking,” said Bryan Bird, Southwest program director for Defenders of Wildlife. “By blasting and bulldozing remote landscapes along the border, the border wall contractors from DHS are destroying critical habitat for jaguar, including one of the last remaining passages for endangered jaguars to move from Mexico into their range in the United States.”
Footage shows Further Border Destruction in Arizona Wilderness
"Footage shows Further Border Destruction in Arizona Wilderness
Contractors are shown blasting Guadalupe Canyon, endangering potential jaguar habitat
As border wall construction continues along the U.S.-Mexico border, more and more landscapes are being bulldozed and blasted to create even ground for building. Much of the border area in eastern Arizona and western New Mexico is extremely rugged, mountainous terrain – ideal habitat for wildlife.
These efforts were again documented earlier this week near Guadalupe Canyon in the Peloncillo Mountains of Arizona. Contractors from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have been shown blasting the side of mountains in order to clear a path.
“The complete devastation of this pristine wilderness is heartbreaking,” said Bryan Bird, Southwest program director for Defenders of Wildlife. “By blasting and bulldozing remote landscapes along the border, the border wall contractors from DHS are destroying critical habitat for jaguar, including one of the last remaining passages for endangered jaguars to move from Mexico into their range in the United States.”
Footage shows Further Border Destruction in Arizona Wilderness
Hopefully, Trump won't be reelected
This is a great news! A much needed judicial victory!
"Late last week, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Donald Trump does not have to the authority to re-appropriate money to pay for his border wall, thereby making the construction of the wall with his money illegal. The court has ordered the construction must immediately stop, presenting a huge barrier for Trump as he faces an already tough uphill battle for reelection."
"Late last week, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Donald Trump does not have to the authority to re-appropriate money to pay for his border wall, thereby making the construction of the wall with his money illegal. The court has ordered the construction must immediately stop, presenting a huge barrier for Trump as he faces an already tough uphill battle for reelection."
Great news!
Here is a another relevant article from Defenders of Wildlife.
The Border Wall: Slamming the Door Shut on Endangered Species
Despite the unprecedented harm the border wall is doing to wildlife and human communities along the border, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is plowing ahead with construction during the COVID-19 crisis in places so rugged and remote that we had thought them safe. Not content with having constructed more than 300 miles of wall in the last three years, the Department is now moving to wall off the rest of Arizona as quickly as possible. Latest outrages include slashing roads through magnificent Coronado National Memorial and blasting away mountain sides in Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge. Defenders of Wildlife uncovered contractors pumping water for wall construction out from under the San Bernardino National Wildlife Refuge, drying up habitat of endangered fish that the refuge was created to protect.
The Border Wall: Slamming the Door Shut on Endangered Species
The Border Wall: Slamming the Door Shut on Endangered Species
Despite the unprecedented harm the border wall is doing to wildlife and human communities along the border, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is plowing ahead with construction during the COVID-19 crisis in places so rugged and remote that we had thought them safe. Not content with having constructed more than 300 miles of wall in the last three years, the Department is now moving to wall off the rest of Arizona as quickly as possible. Latest outrages include slashing roads through magnificent Coronado National Memorial and blasting away mountain sides in Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge. Defenders of Wildlife uncovered contractors pumping water for wall construction out from under the San Bernardino National Wildlife Refuge, drying up habitat of endangered fish that the refuge was created to protect.
The Border Wall: Slamming the Door Shut on Endangered Species
This article from yesterday doesn't say anything about construction stopping - has it not?
That is a fair question. I don't want to make my post too political, but though the courts did mandate stopping the southern border wall construction, I am not sure whether Trump will even comply. One example in US history of the president not complying with federal court rulings is Andrew Jackson with the Trail of Tears. The Supreme Court declared his policy unconstitutional and ordered him to stop, but being that the courts didn't have the authority or means to deploy any military or law enforcement officers to enforce their rulings or stop him in his tracks, so President Jackson made note of that and brazenly disobeyed the ruling. Our current president, Trump has similar tendencies and has demonstrated them time and time again, so who knows what will happen. I think you can fairly call this a constitutional crisis.
In case any of you suffer from being too cheery and need something depressing to read, here you go: The U.S. border wall is tearing through wilderness, right under our noses
Is the wall still being built despite the ruling mentioned above, or is this just an old article?
On Wednesday, we should know who will be President of the USA in 2021. I don't think Biden will pay to build the wall. I don't think Trump can justify paying for the wall
Zooplantman
Well-Known Member
Sadly we will probably not know on Wednesday. We may have a hint but there are too many mail-in votes that will still be uncounted. It will take days or even weeks. It doesn't have to be official until close to the end of the month.
Do expect the current President to declare victory on Wednesday in any case.
Construction can be expected to continue un any case at least through the end of 2020