The Border Patrol's long legacy of abuse, and border walls and buoys are killing the Rio Grande. A moving reflection from a border resident on what that means for the US and Mexico.
For decades, the Border Patrol has operated with extraconstitutional powers along the U.S.-Mexico divide. Now it’s leading the charge in U.S. cities across the country.
Yesterday, the Department of Homeland Security began installing the first mile of more than 500 miles of floating buoy barriers on the Rio Grande.
The installation took place between the Veterans International Bridge and Monsees Road in Brownsville, Texas. The segment will be at least 17 miles long, according to a CBP press release. The Border Chronicle captured drone footage of the installation yesterday from the Mexican side of the river.
Kristi Noem, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, held a press conference on January 7 in Brownsville, Texas, announcing the installation of the floating barriers. The Trump administration said it will install more than 500 miles. Each cylindrical buoy is approximately 15 feet long and 5 feet tall and are being anchored with steel cables to the river’s floor by a floating barge. The company constructing the barriers is Gibraltar Perimeter Security based in Burnet, Texas, at a cost of $96 million — approximately $5.6 million a mile.
DHS Secretary Krisit Noem announces installation of the floating barriers during a press conference in Brownsville, Texas, on Jan. 7 (Photo credit: DHS)
The installation of the floating barrier is in clear violation of the U.S.-Mexico water treaty, which requires both countries to agree to any structure that can potentially divert the course of the river. For years, Mexico has filed diplomatic protests regarding violations of the U.S.-Mexico binational treaty as more wall barriers, shipping containers and other construction has taken place in the river’s floodplain.
In 2023, the Biden administration sued Texas after it installed a different chain-like type of buoy barrier near Eagle Pass, claiming among other violations in the lawsuit, that the installation had damaged diplomatic relations with Mexico.
Last week, The Border Chronicle requested access from DHS to fly a drone to film the installation from the US-side of the Rio Grande and was denied by the agency, which said it was placing “a media hold” on requests. The entire section of the river was placed under a National Defense Area designation, and military control in September 2025. The only way to document the U.S. government’s actions on the binational river was from Mexico. Several stories were published yesterday and today in the Mexican media about the installation of the barriers.
The Border Chronicle will have more on this story in the coming days. Drone footage credit: Victor Loera
For decades, the Border Patrol has operated with extraconstitutional powers along the U.S.-Mexico divide. Now it’s leading the charge in U.S. cities across the country.
For years, Flores has served as an immigration policy advisor to Democrats at the national level, including President Biden. She talks about what went wrong, and what Democrats should be doing now.
Elsa Hull
