Illegal roads and trails are cutting through our national forests at an alarming rate.  New
ones are formed every year removing more wildlife habitat as they crisscross the
landscape.

Our government launched "Operation Gatekeeper" in October, 1994, as a means to deter
illegal crossings into the United States from Mexico, and to divert traffic away from the
border cities. It failed to deter the illegal traffic but rather only shifted their passage and
forced them to now cut through the remote wilderness areas of Arizona and east San
Diego country, where they now threaten endangered and non-endangered wildlife and
species alike. Since the implementation of Operation Gatekeeper there has been a
dramatic influx of foot trails, and this signals bad news for all natural forest inhabitants.

In a summary of the Arizona Bureau of Land Management Report (PDF format) on which
they discuss the impact of illegal aliens July, 2002. The following information was
granted to the public of the severity of this situation.

The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Department of
Interior, U.S. Forest Services and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency joined to
collaborate their efforts and findings to prepare said report to the House Committee on
Appropriations to develop a coordinated plan to mitigate environmental damage being
caused by illegal immigration through federal lands in southeastern Arizona.

Southeast Arizona has 156 miles of border in common with Mexico and represents only
8% of the entire 1,953 miles of international border between the United States and
Mexico.  Yet the environmental damage and other impacts being caused by illegal aliens
crossing into Federal lands in southeast Arizona are far greater then this small
percentage indicates.

This small percentage of area accounts for:
  • Four National Park Service units
  • Three National Wildlife Refuges
  • Twelve separate and unique mountain ranges.
  • "Sky islands" in Coronado National Forest
  • Three National Conservation Areas
  • One National Monument
  • Other Public Lands.
  • Two military installations
  • Land held in trust or Tohono O'odham Nation and Pasqua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona.
  • Nineteen  areas designated as wilderness by the United States Congress.
  • Four wilderness study areas.

In addition this area brings heavy tourism opportunities each year.  It is nationally and
internationally recognized for extraordinary bird watching opportunities hosting over 400
species of birds recorded. Its vegetation and wildlife species are as much an interest
and draw as a large number of them are unique and threatened or endangered under
provisions of the Endangered Species Act.  It as well hosts numerous prehistoric and
historic sites and cultural landscapes with more then 100 properties listed on the
National Register of Historic Places.

All of these are threatened every year by the influx of illegals, drug smugglers and human
smugglers crossing our borders.

Due to their being remote and isolated as well as adjacent to or in close proximity of the
Mexican border, they have become major smuggling (drug and human) arteries to enter
the United States of America undetected.

Roads & Trails
These roads and trails being created do not just exist because of people seeking work
in this country.  Numerous similar incidents to the following could be cited.  In March
2005, Sierra Vista Ranger District Law Enforcement Officers tracked a group of
smugglers northbound from Mexico through Parker Canyon Lake Recreation Area. When
confronted, 20 smugglers abandoned packs of marijuana and fled back to Mexico.  40
packs containing 912.85 pounds of marijuana were seized.

In April of 2001, as reported in the Sierra Vista Herald, From October, 2000 to March of
2001, 162,355 illegal aliens were taken into custody by Border Patrol in Cochise Country
alone.

Resource damage is created by cross country use of motor vehicles in effort to smuggle
illegal aliens or controlled substances.  Even those who are forced to apprehend them
are major problems on Federal Lands.  It is abundantly clear that protection of natural
resources are of no interest to smugglers who attempt to avoid contact and drive
vehicles cross country until unable to go future due to terrain or vegetation.

Even existing roads create problems for smugglers.  A dump truck loaded with 24
hidden illegal aliens, stalled and rolled backwards off the road in Leslie Canyon National
Wildlife Refuge.  It almost turned over into a critical habitat for endangered fish in Leslie
Creek which would have been fatal for both the humans and also native species.

The following figures were offered by the following agencies from the time span of 1996-
2001.

  • Abandoned Motor Vehicles
  • U.S. Forest Service  - 298
  • Leslie Canyon and San Buernardino National Wildlife Refuges - 5
  • Bureau of Land Management - 181
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services - 42

  • Impounded Motor Vehicles
  • Leslie Canyon and San Bernardino National Wildlife Refuges - 16
  • Bureau of Land Management - 138
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services - 37

  • Significant Damage to National Resources by off-road vehicle use.
  • U.S. Forest Service - 300 miles
  • Leslie Canyon and San Bernardino National Wildlife Refuges - 8 miles
  • Bureau of Land Management - 318 miles
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - 17 miles.
Illegal Alien Road/Trail Damage
BAG LADIES (and men)
Cleaning up the environment
isn't optional!
We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.
-Native American Proverb
The  Pima Pineapple Cactus
habitat on Sierra Vista Ranger
District has reported a decline in
habitat quality for the Pima
Pineapple Cactus's survival due
to illegal aliens and other border
related problems. This cactus is
of great value to the ecological
system as it offers food and
water to several desert animals.
Due to habitat destruction it now
exists on the
endangered/threatened list.
New trails  are threatening
breeding bird populations. The
worst affected is that of ground
nesting birds such as the
Masked Bobwhite Quail which is
already endangered.
Additional vegetation has been
severely damaged or destroyed
by illegal aliens uprooting native
plants such as Ocotillo in order
to build temporary shelters or to
camouflage drug stashes.
Hundreds perhaps thousands of
new trails and roads have been
created on Federal lands in
Southeastern Arizona by illegal
alien crossings.  They bring with
them damage and destruction to
cactus and other sensitive
vegetations, disrupt and prohibit
re vegetation, disturb wildlife and
their cover and travel routes,
cause soil compaction and
erosion, and impact stream
bank stability.
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