A thin, long line runs across Arizona’s dusty landscape. This is not a fence or wall, but a border barrier. It is entirely made of shipping containers, which are stacked one on top of the other.
Republican Governor Doug Ducey ordered the construction of an improvised wall, topped with concertinawire in August to close gaps at the U.S. Mexico border that were being used by migrants.
He claimed that border communities were overwhelmed by the containers, which are double-stacked and would be 22 feet high (6.7m).
Reuters saw a container wall in Cochise County being built after a Yuma County order was placed.
Local environmental activists protested the construction as it was threatening wildlife. A small group of people sat beside one of the containers on Tuesday.
We are not there to do any harm or get in the way of anyone. Eamon Harrity is the Sky Island Alliance wildlife project manager.
According to the Center for Biological Diversity, the containers could block a crucial jaguar or ocelot migration route. The U.S. Forest Service stated at the end November that it might create safety hazards and declared the wall illegal.
Ducey claims he is entitled to protect the citizens of Arizona as well as the state. Ducey has asked a judge for an injunction to prevent the federal government’s interference. The federal government moved to dismiss the lawsuit last month.
