DHS Waives Environmental Laws For Border Wall Construction

NPR | By Eric Westervelt

Published August 1, 2017 at 4:29 PM EDT

The Department of Homeland Security announced Tuesday that it would waive environmental and other laws to ensure the "expeditious construction" of barriers and roads near the U.S.-Mexico border in the San Diego region. Environmentalists have warned that extending the border wall could damage ecosystems and threaten wildlife habitats.

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Eric Westervelt

Correspondent-Editor Eric Westervelt has covered defining conflicts and major stories across the world and America for NPR News. He's served as a correspondent and Bureau Chief in Jerusalem, Baghdad and Berlin, covering the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Ukraine, as well as conflicts across the Middle East including Israel-Palestine, Israel-Lebanon, the Gaza Strip and the North African revolutions that swept Egypt, Libya and Tunisia. In Europe he covered everything from the economic crisis and migration to Bach's Christmas Oratorio.