KJZZ (May 12, 2020) by Michel Marizco

The Trump administration wants to build a new section of border fence through the Huachuca Mountains in Cochise County. The Arizona Trail Association says that would destroy the trailhead to the legacy hiking path.

Customs and Border Protection is taking public comment through May 15 on the project. It wants to build an additional 74 miles of border fence in Arizona and part of that would cut through Coronado National Memorial and a portion of the Arizona Trail.

“It’s not just the tread and the trail that’s important because it is, but it’s the associated setting, it’s the views,” Association director Matthew Nelson said.

CBP and its umbrella agency the Homeland Security Department have been able to skirt environmental rules to build the new fence. The department could also bypass the National Trails System Act.

The Trump administration has raced to build hundreds of miles of new 30-foot-high bollard style fence along the U.S. Mexico border. The agency is accepting comments through May 15.