New border wall construction begins in Hudspeth County

HUDSPETH COUNTY, Texas (KVIA) -- Border wall construction started in Hudspeth County, according to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection website. It's part of the Big Bend 1 Project, which includes 47.3 miles of border wall.

CBP's website said the project implements President Donald Trump's "Securing our Borders" Executive Order and "Declaring a National Emergency at the Southern Border of the United States" Proclamation.

CBP is doing this, in part, by using $46.5 billion from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

The project, also known as the "Smart Wall," includes a steel wall, detection technology and cameras.

On the Smart Wall project page, CBP added a picture of a crane installing border wall in Hudspeth County. It's unclear when the construction started.

The new construction is separate from a border project in Big Bend National Park. CBP paused all construction in the park to conduct an evaluation. CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott shared the following statement on Aug. 17:

"CBP is firmly committed to protecting America,  and that includes our national treasures like Big Bend National Park. We know the current and predictable national security threats and they are real.  Now over the next couple of days, I will join a small team to evaluate the terrain and listen to local leadership, community members and stakeholders to ensure that we secure our borders while simultaneously protecting BBNP for generations to come." 

CBP's said it's not planning to use 30-foot bollard border wall in Big Bend National Park or the state park. Instead, it will use cameras and sensors. It said in limited areas, it will use low-profile barriers to stop illegal vehicle access.

The agency said it's working with the National Park Service to keep nearby nature attractions open and to identify resources that could be affected by the project.

"We are working together to find ways to avoid or minimize impacts to these resources," CBP said on its website.

Conserve Big Bend and No Big Bend Wall issued the following statement on the new construction:

"The threat of a border wall in our region is now a reality. This is heartbreaking, especially for the families who have worked this land for generations. CBP's own numbers show the Big Bend Sector has had the fewest apprehensions of any southwest border sector every year for 53 years. Nothing in that record justifies a wall. That is why landowners went to federal court on Monday, and why none of us are going anywhere. Hundreds of us are standing together, and a few steel panels going up doesn't change that."