During Big Bend borders design, feds pausing while the CBP commissioner makes a visit to the park.

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Rodney Scott, the head of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, announced that his company would suspend building on Big Bend National Park while conducting an “on-the-ground evaluation,” reversing its course after heavy machinery started moving dirt.

Scott stated in a videos posted to X on Monday that he was going to the park and that he had ordered a design wait on Sunday night.

According to Scott,” I put a halt to all action in that area, as far as construction goes, until I can go there and conduct a private evaluation, talk to some stakeholders, and talk to some local law enforcement that.” More to pursue this year.

Nearby people, businesses, and law enforcement officials are outraged by Scott’s news. Some people have criticized plans to build border crossings in the parklands and demanded that CBP officers speak up about their problems.

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How much CBP intends to put the pause into effect was unclear at the time.

The garden, a cherished location for generations of Texans, will now have an access road and barriers for vehicles. This month, bulldozers arrived in Great Bend to commence what CBP claims are style and survey work.

The start of construction has caused republican annoyance. Democrats in Texas have been vocal in opposition to the job for months, arguing that building border facilities in the park would be pointless, harmful, and a threat to Texas ‘ sovereignty. The Big Bend region is home to the 23rd Congressional District of Texas, and both individuals for the state’s 23rd Congressional District oppose the roof work.

In recent days, more Republican candidates have started making noises. In a text sent on August 7 by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, he reportedly requested that Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin not consult with partners.

Scott said in a statement that he and a small team will “evaluate the ground and talk to local leadership, community members, and partners to ensure that we secure our borders while simultaneously protecting BBNP for generations to come.”

Terrell County Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland, a resigned Border Patrol agent who has argued that a border wall in the Big Bend area is needless, said he has been in contact with Scott, a friend, since their days as Border Patrol coworkers in the 1990s.

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Cleveland and other officers in the Big Bend, as well as their counterparts in Brewster, Hudspeth, and Jeff Davis regions, are meeting with Scott in Alpine on Tuesday afternoon, according to Cleveland’s statement to the Tribune.

Gov. Greg Abbott claimed at an related news conference in Waco on Monday that he spoke with Mullin, who” committed to me that they will not be building a wall or a gate in Big Bend National Park.”

The minister informed me that there would be no design of any kind of barrier in Big Bend National Park, according to Abbott. He claimed that my talk with the secretary over the weekend led to Scott’s statement on Monday.

He added that federal officials is secure this region of the Texas-Mexico border “without compromising the beauty of the national garden.” They can do this using technology like drones.

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CBP has stated that it has no intention of installing stadium lighting in the park or constructing a 30-foot wall. The organization stated in a statement on Thursday that it is working to maintain visitor access and preserve the landscape, but that the construction is necessary for border security.

These improvements will enable our agents to spot illegal crossings, react more quickly, and assist visitors in danger, according to Scott. ” We will not leave Big Bend as an opening for cartels to exploit by shifting their routes and tactics,” said the statement as we strengthen the border across the southwest.

The 1, 000-foot cliffs along the park’s riverbank are” God’s walls,” according to local officials and park advocates, and any construction would irreparably harm the park’s distinctive ecology and the local tourism and outdoor industries. The Big Bend sector of CBP is geographically large but quiet, accounting for only 1.3 % of border security apprehensions in 2025.

U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Austin, thanked Scott for his comment. He claimed the administration should make its plans for the park public and that a 30-foot bollard fence in the park was unnecessary.

He wrote on social media that” We can secure Big Bend while safeguarding its God-given scenery.”

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Park advocates praised the pause while pushing for a more permanent solution.

According to Laiken Jordahl, a national public lands advocate with the Center for Biological Diversity,” this temporary pause shows how much non-partisan public pressure is mounting in West Texas and across America to stop the irreversible destruction unfolding in this crown jewel national park.” Although it’s good to hear that construction at Big Bend is likely to resume soon, the article concludes. We won’t rest until these contracts are terminated, these workers are relocated, the waivers are voided, and every wall plan for the greater Big Bend region is permanently removed.

Prior to this, CBP had referred to its park activities as” survey and design work — NOT the construction of a wall through the park.” Today, Scott’s description of the activity as” construction” highlighted the dissatisfaction with the work that federal contractors have already done in the park.

The owner of Far Flung Outdoor Center in Terlingua, Billy Bartko, said,” It’s a win that he’s looking at the park, but it also makes a real statement about the irresponsibility of unleashing bulldozers before you take a look at something.”

Diverse organizations have begun legal proceedings to make CBP stop. In order to prevent construction in the park until the case can be decided, state senator Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio, submitted a petition asking for a temporary restraining order.

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The pause, according to Gutierrez, is a” good thing,” but opponents should continue to demand a complete stoppage. He claimed that CBP misrepresented the park’s already-active surveying activity.

” That’s not what has occurred here,” Gutierrez said. ” The countryside, of hills and mountains, including the Mariscal Mountains and beyond, have been completely cleared, completely destroying vegetation [and ] archaeological sites in the world without any regard.” We must put a stop to this.

This report was written by Kayla Guo and Uriel J. Garca.

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Aug 17, 2026Hill Country Post

During Big Bend borders design, feds pausing while the CBP commissioner makes a visit to the park.

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