WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Today, the House Appropriations Committee marked up a Homeland Security appropriations bill that includes funds for a wall on the Southern U.S. border-- both an attack on human rights and conservation. The committee’s proposed $1.6 billion for a border wall would fund a 72-mile barrier which poses grave risks to human safety and critical Southern U.S. ecosystems. On Friday, news was released that an initial phase of Trump’s proposed wall construction would fragment the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge.
In response, Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune released the following statement:
“A wall is an ineffective and inhumane waste of taxpayer money. It makes no sense to spend nearly $2 billion on this boondoggle of a wall that will sacrifice access to safe drinking water, wildlife, and wild places for a false sense of security.
“The Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge-- targeted for the first expansion of the border wall under Trump-- hosts over 400 types of rare birds, as well as the endangered ocelot, and provides critical outdoor access for the Rio Grande Valley. The permanent damage to this refuge is just the tip of the human, economic and environmental toll that we know will accompany additional walls along the border.
"Congress must abandon the doomed ‘build a wall’ approach in favor of investing in sustainable infrastructure and real solutions that will keep communities intact, save taxpayer money, and safeguard the environment and outdoor economy.”
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