Trump wall poses a risk of flooding on the Mexican border

Elliott Spaghetti
Associated Press

The wall administration during the Trump administration “created big holes” in the flood defense system in the lower reaches of the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, the Homeland Security Department said. The department said the flood protection system would be “fixed” quickly without extending the wall.

Officials in Hidalgo County, Texas, have expressed concern about the risk of flooding during the hurricane season beginning in June, with cracks in the dyke system following Joe Biden halting construction of the border wall shortly after taking office in January.

The department said it would also correct “improper compression of soil and construction equipment” along part of the 22.4-mile wall in San Diego and would soon unveil plans to address the additional damage caused by the construction of the border wall during Donald’s presidency. Trump. Much of the San Diego wall passes through areas not assigned to border patrol officers.

Joe Biden ordered the construction of the walls in the Oval Office to stop on his first day – leaving the billion-dollar work unfinished – but still on contract – after Donald Trump gave him so much energy to build more than 720 kilometers of wall last year, that he achieved it eight days before he left office.

Joe Biden gave his assistants until the end of March to find out how much it would cost to cancel contracts and whether the money could be spent elsewhere. Answers began to emerge from Friday.

The Department of Defense said in a statement that the contracts were being terminated and that the unallocated money would be used for military construction projects. The department is examining which projects this money will be diverted to.

As of Jan. 15, the government had spent $ 6.1 billion of the $ 8.8 billion contracted, with the Democratic Senate aide familiar with the matter and who spoke in anonymous pursuit as details were not disclosed? . The total Donald Trump wall in the deal is likely to reach 1,069 kilometers.

Publicly, the Trump administration has said it received $ 15 billion for the wall. The Senate aide said it was actually $ 16.45 billion, of which $ 5.8 billion was allocated by Congress and the rest was diverted from the defense and treasury departments.

Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortes recently told the Border Report that there have been at least four violations of the dyke policy that will protect the hinterland of Hidalgo County from flooding when a major storm occurs.

The Earth Dam was built under a 2006 law aimed at protecting the delta region from flooding, but it is also the basis for Donald Trump’s border wall. Richard Cortes said areas were damaged when Joe Biden stopped working.

Conservationists welcomed the announcement Friday.

“This long-awaited relief is a big step towards justice for the people and wildlife in the border areas,” said Lichen Jordal of the Center for Biodiversity. “We thank the Biden administration for putting an end to this senseless destruction.”