Here’s an environmental regulation problem that you can’t blame on EPA head Stephen Johnson. The Department of Homeland Security has vowed to finish building the last 470 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border fence—and will knowingly violate 30 land-management laws in the process.

DHS is using a waiver granted by Congress under the REAL ID act. The Washington Post’s Juliet Eilperin writes, “The use of the waiver authority means that the agency will not have to conduct detailed reviews of how the fence’s components will affect wildlife, water quality, and vegetation in the area.” Hey, sometimes you have to break a few eggs to make a largely symbolic 700-mile fence that upsets the Mexican government.  Read Eilperin here.  MB

Comment RSS - Trackback URI