Trump White House plans to install 17-mile buoy barrier along Rio Grande in South Texas

Taking an apparent lead from Gov. Greg Abbott, the Department of Homeland Security is installing 17 miles of “waterborne barrier” along a deep South Texas stretch of the Rio Grande, according a Border Report investigation.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem signed a waiver to expedite construction of the barrier, the federal agency said last week in a news release. It’s the sixth waiver Noem has signed lo speed up construction of barricades along the U.S.-Mexico border, the online news outlet reports.

The barrier, which is expected to include floating buoys, will be built south of Brownsville, across from Matamoros, Mexico, a memo obtained by Border Report reportedly states. The distance covered by the barrier could span from Brownsville to the Gulf Coast near the rocket launch site for billionaire Elon Musk’s Space, according to the story.

White House project follows Republican governor Abbott’s controversial 2023 installation of a 1,000-foot string of buoys in the Rio Grande as part of the Operation Lone Star immigration crackdown. The state spent around $1 million to deploy the buoys, which are outfitted with razor-like blades.

Based on the per-foot costs of the state’s Rio Grande barrier, Border Report estimates the federal structure would have a likely price tag around $90 million.

The Biden White House’s Justice Department sued to remove the Texas river barrier, arguing it was an illegal obstruction of a navigable waterway. A court ruled the buoys could remain in place as the legal battle plays out.

Immigrant-rights groups have raised concerns the Abbott’s Rio Grande barrier endangers border crossers, while environmentalists argue it may damage the river by altering its natural flow. Observers have also questioned the effectiveness of installing barriers in the Rio Grande, since border crossers can find other crossing points.

“The point of the border buoys was political show, and to try to get into a fight with the federal government,” Bob Libal, a Texas-based consultant for Human Rights Watch, told the Texas Observer earlier this year. “Of course, they’re going to spend more money on the fight than they are on anything that is meaningful.”

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This article appears in Jun 26 – Jul 9, 2025.