U. S. Customs and Border Protection to Construct 47 Miles of Border Wall and 70 Miles of System Attributes in Maverick County, Public Comment Deadline is December 22nd
By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2025
The United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) under President Donald J. Trump announced on Thursday, November 20, 2025 that it is planning to construct approximately 47 miles of Border Barrier System (Border Wall) and 70 miles of system attributes in Maverick County and Webb Counties, Texas within the United States Border Patrol’s (USBP) Del Rio Sector.
On November 19, 2025, Secretary Kristi Noem of the U. S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a waiver covering certain laws, regulations, and other legal requirements to ensure the expeditious construction of barriers and roads in the vicinity of the international land border in the State of Texas.
According to Section 102(b)(1)(C) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) of 1996, CBP is requesting public comment on the project’s potential impacts to the environment, cultural, quality of life, and commerce, including socioeconomic impacts.
The planned actions include the construction and maintenance of: 1) approximately 47 miles of primary border barrier and system attributes in Maverick County and Webb Counties, Texas within the Del Rio U. S. Border Patrol Sector; and 2) approximately 70 miles of barrier system attributes which may include, as appropriate to U. S. Border Patrol’s operational needs, fiber optic cables, lighting poles, artificial lighting, power cables, surveillance cameras, access and patrol roads, and utility shelters along the international border (where new primary barrier is being constructed, as well as in locations where there is existing barrier in the U. S. Border Patrol Del Rio Sector).
CBP will be accepting public comments on the planned project until December 22, 2025. Citizens may submit their comments by email to CBP at: DelRioComments@cbp.dhs.gov. Please include “Del Rio Border Barrier System Construction” in the subject of your public comments in your email.
Comments may also be submitted to CBP by calling (833) 412-2056 or to the following address: U. S. Customs and Border Protection, U. S. Border Patrol Headquarters, Program Management Office Directorate, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. 6.5E Mail Stop 1039, Washington, DC 20229-1100, ATTN: Michelle Barnes .
The City of Eagle Pass and Maverick County leaders have been notified of two proposed Trump Administration projects along the Rio Grande River international boundary with Mexico, one being the construction and placement of 63 miles of waterborne barriers, also known as “water buoys,” in Maverick County and now the construction of 47 miles of the Trump Border Wall as well as 70 miles of system attributes in Maverick County. City and County officials have not indicated what their position on these double-whammy of border wall and buoys on the Rio Grande River will be, and what actions, if any, will they take concerning these two projects.
Dr. Adriana E. Martinez, a university professor specializing in rivers at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville, personally met with Eagle Pass Mayor Aaron Valdez, City Manager Homero Balderas, and City Councilwoman Jessica Rey Ramon on Monday, November 24, 2025 at City Hall to advise them of the proposed 63 miles of water buoys scheduled to be installed on the Rio Grande in Eagle Pass and Maverick County similar to the ones placed by Texas Governor Greg Abbott. Dr. Martinez advised Mayor Valdez, Councilwoman Ramon, and City Manager Balderas that the installation of the water buoys on the Rio Grande River will change the flow of the river and affect the quality of the water City residents consume from the Rio Grande.
Dr. Martinez also spoke before Maverick County Commissioners Court at their Monday, November 24, 2025 meeting and advised them of the same issues as she did with the City of Eagle Pass.
One local non-profit organization, the Eagle Pass Border Coalition, published a letter to CBP on Saturday, November 22, 2025 in the Eagle Pass Business Journal advocating the installation of the 63 miles of water buoys on the Rio Grande will cause an environmental catastrophe and adversely impact the City of Eagle Pass’s sole potable water supply—the Rio Grande River, said Jessie Fuentes, Board Member.
Eagle Pass, Maverick County, and concerned citizens are encouraged to submit written public comments to CBP regarding the proposed construction of 47 miles of the Trump Border Wall as well as 70 miles of system attributes by no later than December 22, 2025.
