Memo Reveals Refuge Officers’ Struggle to Secure Lands Along Southwest Border
As the threat of violence stemming from illegal immigration hangs over federal lands in southern Arizona, an internal memo from 2007 reveals that refuge officers have been spending most of their time struggling to deal with border-related activities instead of protecting wildlife habitat.
The memo is three years old, but it is unlikely that much has changed, since parts of five federal lands — including two designated national monuments — continue to post travel warnings or be outright closed to the public because of the dangers of “human and drug trafficking” along the Mexican border.
