Just to clarify, from Edge Wade:
This is from the National Wildlife Refuge Association, 
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"Two weeks ago, we learned that the Administration had been working in 
secret for months on preparations to construct a border wall through 
Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge in South Texas. Since then, we™ve 
learned a bit more about the proposed wall:



     Wall construction could begin as early as this November with 
already appropriated funds that have been moved from other programs

     The Administration plans to waive standard environmental impact 
studies and bypass all environmental laws under the authority of the 
REAL ID Act of 2005

     The wall will be 18 feet tall and approximately three miles long

     Last week, the House passed a Defense Minibus that appropriated 
$1.6 billion for border wall construction in FY18; however, the fate of 
this bill is still largely uncertain in the Senate

     The planned route for the wall would cut off the Visitor Center 
from the refuge



If the wall were constructed as described it would eliminate migratory 
movements of mammals, which could include endangered ocelots and other 
wildlife leading to genetic inbreeding and eventually species 
extinction. The concrete levee wall could also result in increased 
flooding within the refuge, trapping and drowning wildlife that would be 
unable to escape.



Santa Ana NWR is an economic powerhouse that generates an estimated $462 
million to the local economy and hosts 165,000 visitors each year. A 
border wall cutting off the Visitor Center from the rest refuge would 
discourage visitation “ if the public were still even allowed to visit! 
As of now, we still don™t know how the wall would affect public access 
to the refuge.



Because the wall would disrupt the environmental integrity of one of the 
most biologically diverse areas in the U.S. and the National Wildlife 
Refuge System, the Refuge Association opposes the construction of the 
border wall through the refuge. We believe that the Administration needs 
to conduct a broader assessment for the best placement of infrastructure 
and border technology to serve its purpose."



Edge Wade

Conservation Partnership Coordinator

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"

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