CBP pauses all construction activity at Big Bend National Park in Texas amid bipartisan backlash and multiple lawsuits

U.S. Customs and Border Protection halted all construction activity at Big Bend National Park in southern Texas on 18 August 2026, after CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott announced a personal "on-the-ground evaluation" of the project. The pause came amid national scrutiny and calls from the National Parks Conservation Association to permanently stop construction activity.^[1] The duration of the stoppage was not disclosed, and the underlying contract remains in place.

What CBP says it is building

CBP has pushed back on characterizations of the project as a conventional border wall. The agency disputed reports about the extent of construction planned for the park in an 13 August statement, saying it would only build one new access road, improve existing roads, install detection technology, and place vehicle barriers in strategic locations. CBP said it does not intend to construct a 30-foot wall or install stadium-style lighting inside Big Bend National Park.

Critics dispute that framing. The Center for Biological Diversity's national public lands advocate Laiken Jordahl said crews are "clearing out a totally undisturbed area for a brand new road that is uprooting native vegetation, willows, palo verde, mesquite trees." Federal contractors authorized by CBP began bulldozing miles of sensitive habitat near Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend National Park over the weekend before the pause was announced.

Legal and political pressure

The pause follows a wave of legal challenges and bipartisan political opposition:

• Conservation groups sued the Trump administration for waiving more than 24 federal laws that could speed construction of border wall infrastructure through the park.
• The People of La Junta for Preservation, a nonprofit associated with the Lipan Apache community, sued the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies to halt work begun under a 9 June order from Secretary Markwayne Mullin that waived federal and state requirements to allow construction along 62 miles of the border with Mexico.
• Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, asked Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin in a 7 August letter to halt construction until he or a designee consults with stakeholders.
• Republican Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland of Terrell County, who worked for Border Patrol for 26 years, has publicly opposed CBP's plans for physical barriers in the region, arguing they are unnecessary and ineffective.

The legal path has been difficult for opponents. U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton concluded that a July 2 waiver defeated "any claim" that DHS violated part of the Rivers and Harbors Act.

The project's regulatory backstory

The construction authority traces to a series of sweeping waivers. Then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem signed at least 28 environmental and cultural preservation waivers to speed up the project. Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin subsequently issued a notice waiving 35 federal laws for the project at what DHS described as "an area of high illegal entry."

CBP recorded 3,096 migrant encounters in the Big Bend Sector in fiscal year 2025 - just 1.3% of the 237,538 apprehensions recorded across the entire U.S.-Mexico border. That figure makes the Big Bend Sector the least active along the southern border by encounter volume. The sector is also the largest, covering 77 Texas counties and 517 miles of the 1,954-mile-long U.S.-Mexico border, including the state and national parks.

Scott's decision does not cancel the project or the underlying contract. Construction inside the park will remain paused while he reviews conditions firsthand and speaks with local officials, law enforcement, residents, and other stakeholders - a review he said will guide the agency's next steps. Whether that review produces a revised scope, a permanent halt, or a resumption of the original plan will determine whether the multiple pending lawsuits proceed to substantive rulings.