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More Arizona Border Environment Stories

A line of DPS officers forms in front of an Indigenous Peoples' Day Protest north of the Lukeville Port of Entry on Oct. 12, 2020.

'Falling on deaf ears': Tohono O'odham Nation reacts to use of force at Indigenous protest

Tohono O'odham Nation Chairman Ned Norris Jr. says tribal needs along the border are being ignored.
Arizona Department of Safety officers surround and handcuff an Indigenous demonstrator during an O'odham-led blockade at a Border Patrol checkpoint on Highway 85 on October 12, 2020.

Indigenous Peoples' Day border demonstration ends with tear gas, arrests

11 demonstrators taken into DPS custody during a Border Patrol checkpoint blockade in Pima County.
Tribal members and supporters gather in front of the construction line to wave down O'odham runners coming from Sonora ahead of a cross-border ceremony at Quitobaquito Springs on Sept. 27, 2020.

NPS closes route to Quitobaquito Springs

Closure comes a day after O'odham leaders held a cross-border ceremony at the spring.
Demonstrators struggle as National Park Service officers and Border Patrol agents try to pull people from a fallen human chain during a demonstration at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument on Sept. 21, 2020.

Stand off with Border Patrol, National Park Service ends in scuffle with Indigenous-led demonstrators

O'odham organizers and their supporters stopped construction for over five hours at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.
One of the spring-fed ponds at the San Bernardino National Wildlife Refuge in October 2019, which sits up against the U.S.-Mexico border.

Border wall groundwater pumping threatens to push endangered species to 'brink of extinction'

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials worry water pumping will deplete the San Bernardino Valley springs and aquifer.
Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge encompasses nearly 118,000 acres southwest of Tucson and includes a stretch of the border with Mexico.

Work starts on new section of border wall in national wildlife refuge

North-Dakota-based Fisher Sand and Gravel has broken ground on a $1.3 billion project in southeast Arizona.
Quitobaquito pond, July 18, 2020.

'A worst-case scenario': Leaks, dust, water pumping and drought plague Quitobaquito

Border-hugging spring and its pond are sacred to Hia C-ed O'odham and the Tohono O'odham communities
Ryan Parker Knox (left) and Joseph McGrath performing "The Mark on the Wall" by Virginia Woolf in the AZPM radio studio.

Rogue Radio presents Virginia Woolf's "The Mark on the Wall"

Also on Arizona Spotlight: Tucson Samaritans' 18 year mission continues; and how the border wall endangers the future of the Sonoyta mud turtle.
Life casts can be a powerful tool for self-exploration, says Paul Weir, a key organizer of Tucson's annual All Souls Procession.

Behind the Mask

Also on Arizona Spotlight: A plea on behalf of sacred lands threatened by border wall construction; and a sincere thank you to comic book legend Dennis J. O'Neil.
A court document submitted by federal attorneys May 20 eliminates funding for a stretch of border wall that would have crossed through tribal land.

Defense Department cuts funding for border wall section in Yuma

A court document pulls funding for a 7-mile stretch that would have crossed tribal land.
Looking west toward the San Rafael Valley and the Patagonia Mountains.

Groups say border wall construction threatens biodiversity of Arizona sky islands

Conservation groups say the animals rely on the ranges to travel between habitats in the U.S. and Mexico.
A construction worker works on installing 30-foot bollard fencing along Arizona's border with Mexico in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, February 2020.

Lawsuits challenging border wall funding can move forward, judge rules

A U.S. District Court judge last week ruled two lawsuits brought by environmental groups will be allowed to continue.
Verónica Reyes-Escudero examines photos from the de la Torre family collection at UA Special Collections.

UA Special Collections: Preserving the Stories

Also on Arizona Spotlight: The TUSD's ongoing debate about expanding sex education; Is there any hope left for the 2019 monsoon?; and has Arizona's "stupid motorist law" increased flash flood safety?
Astronaut Charles M. Duke Jr., lunar module pilot of the Apollo 16 lunar landing mission, is photographed collecting lunar samples at Station no. 1 during the first Apollo 16 extravehicular activity at the Descartes landing site. This picture, looking eastward, was taken by Astronaut John W. Young, commander. Duke is standing at the rim of Plum crater, which is 40 meters in diameter and 10 meters deep. The parked Lunar Roving Vehicle can be seen in the left background.

Geoff Notkin on the past - and future - of space exploration.

Also on Arizona Spotlight: Mexican rock stars sing out about immigration; and a party to celebrate the "The Queen of the Night" at Tohono Chul.
Archie is a big brown bat, and has been taken care of by Bob & Debbie Beucher since being rescued more than sixteen years ago.

Bat night at the Mission Garden

Also: A new facility in Nogales, Sonora to help migrants following the Trump administration's "Remain in Mexico" policy; and strangers find common ground with "One Small Step".
A Border Patrol vehicle drives along a section of fence at the Organ Pipe National Monument, west of Lukeville, Arizona, on Friday, Nov. 2, 2018.

Border Wall to Go Up in National Monument, Wildlife Refuge

DHS has again waived environmental laws to build more barriers along the southern border.

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