Thursday, July 30, 2009, 1:46pm MDT
Center for Immigration Studies: Border walls will protect environment

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The Center for Immigration Studies says environmentalist and political opposition to border walls is misguided because human smugglers, drug traffickers and illegal immigrants trash desert areas negatively impacting wildlife.

The Sierra Club, Center for Biological Diversity, U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva of Tucson and U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano are among those cool to the use of border fences to curtail illegal immigration into Arizona from Mexico.

Napolitano questions their effectiveness, while environmental groups, Grijalva and some other Democrats cite the impact on the desert environments.

The Center for Immigration Studies contends, however, that walls and other border security will curtail illegal entries. The CIS also said smugglers, traffickers and illegal immigrants leave fields of trash and waste in their wake, start wildfires and trample Arizona desert areas that are home to coyotes, bears, wild pigs and turkeys. Hidden cameras have shown fields of discarded trash, clothing and backpacks left by illegals and drug smugglers, the center said, noting those cameras have not been monitored under the Barack Obama administration.

The CIS also issued a report Wednesday saying that the illegal immigrant population in the U.S. dropped by 1.7 million people to 10.8 million in the first quarter since 2007 when the U.S. recession started.



Mike Sunnucks of the Phoenix Business Journal, an affiliated publication, compiled this report.


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