The Department of Homeland Security announced yesterday that it would waive environmental laws for the construction of the remaining 470 miles of border fence in an effort to get that fence built before the end of 2008.
The Washington Post article mentions significant potential impacts to wildlife, water quality and vegetation.
Wildlands CPR works to prevent new road construction becuase roads create such a barrier to wildlife movement, in addition to leading to direct road kill, water quality impacts, and habitat fragmentation. But the impacts from building this wall will far surpass the standard barrier impacts from other linear barriers.
I've often wondered, but failed to easily find, any data on the long-term impacts the Great Wall of China had on wildlife and vegetatinon over the millenia. Have there been real impacts to wildlife populations because of the more than 4000 mile barrier that the Great Wall created. A brief review of other international border walls shows that the proposed wall between the U.S. and Mexico would be one of the longest walls in existence.
In January 2007, BioScience published a one page summary of environmental impacts from this border wall. Groups like Sky Island Alliance, Center for Biological Diversity and Defenders of Wildlife are taking the lead in trying to fight this effort, but yesterday's announcement to waive all remaining environmental laws will only increase their challenge.
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