"I stand with the Keep Big Bend Wild coalition"
I stand with the Keep Big Bend Wild coalition in their mission to secure official Wilderness designation for Big Bend National Park's untouched backcountry. This fight isn't new—the National Park Service first championed it in 1974, during my tenure as Director, and reaffirmed the call in 1978. Now, it's time for Congress to act. By enshrining permanent, statutory protection, we can ensure Big Bend’s breathtaking landscapes remain shielded from policy shifts or development threats. It's heartening to see the backing of former NPS Directors, united in our commitment to safeguarding America's wilderness legacy so future generations can continue to embrace its solitude, beauty, and ecological richness."
~ Ronald H. Walker, NPS Director 1973-1975
The Texan | Big Bend Border Wall Project Sparks Backlash, Confusion from Residents and Texas Officials
Bulldozers broke ground in Big Bend National Park last week, as public backlash continues to build against U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) activity in the park. Last fall, then-Secretary of Homeland[…]
WaPo | Bulldozing begins at Big Bend National Park for border construction
Government contractors are bulldozing parts of the iconic and environmentally sensitive Big Bend National Park as the Trump administration pushes forward with a $46.5 billion effort to expand a[…]
SFGate | Bulldozers are ripping apart Big Bend National Park. Conservationists are furious.
Originally posted August 7, 2026 Heavy construction equipment has appeared inside Big Bend National Park in southern Texas as contractors for Customs and Border Protection begin a land assessment.[…]
Courier Texas | Trump Administration begins construction inside Big Bend
Billy Bartko has spent his life building something in Terlingua. He and his wife own Far Flung Outdoor Center near Big Bend National Park—guided river trips, Jeep tours, ATV tours, and[…]
Texas Standard | Advocates fear Big Bend border wall will pollute Earth’s largest Dark Sky Reserve
Among the many reasons people love far West Texas is the dark skies over the Big Bend region. It’s a wide-open pool of stars, complete with the Milky Way.
Marfa Public Radio | James Talarico slams ‘corrupt’ Big Bend border wall on campaign trail
James Talarico, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas, slammed the Trump administration’s plan to build a 175-mile stretch of border wall in the Big Bend region at a campaign event[…]
NYTimes | Dark Sky Defenders Raise Alarm Along the Border of West Texas
Unfettered access to the cosmos is an integral part of the landscape in Terlingua and across the Big Bend region of West Texas. It has fostered a community of[…]
Texas Observer | What Is (and Isn’t) Happening with the Border Wall in Big Bend
You’ve probably heard about the Trump administration’s plans for a border wall through Big Bend. Or its plans not to build a wall at all, but instead to put[…]
The Border Chronicle | Trump’s Border Wall Is Coming for Some of the Oldest Murals in North America
On June 3, the Department of Homeland Security awarded its largest upfront border wall contract to date to Fisher Sand & Gravel, a North Dakota company with a checkered[…]
The Alpine Avalanche | Border Wall Outcries Fall on Deaf Ears
The ongoing controversy involving the building of a border wall in Big Bend looks to be forging ahead, despite multiple organizations and conservation advocates’ pleas, as well as comments[…]
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Support Keep Big Bend Wild
Click this button to add your name to the growing list of individuals, businesses, and organizations supporting a wilderness designation for the undeveloped lands of Big Bend National Park.
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Every contribution helps defray the cost of our volunteers to produce materials and travel to meetings to build awareness and strengthen our coalition.
Contributions supporting Keep Big Bend Wild are managed by the El Paso Community Foundation and are tax deductible as allowed by law.
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Images © Rebecca Latson.
Keep Big Bend Wild
P.O. Box 66
Big Bend National Park, TX, 79834