Trump's Wall and the Rio Grande

There have been a lot of interactive maps which visualize the scale of Trump's border wall between the USA and Mexico. These include USA Today's The Wall - an in-depth examination of Donald Trump's border wall, Reveal's The Wall and the Intercept's Visualizing the U.S.-Mexico Border.

The Border Wall and the Rio Grande takes a different approach to these three maps. This Esri Story Map, created by the Defenders of Wildlife, takes a closer look at the environmental and social impacts a huge wall could have on the national wildlife refuge land in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. The Border Wall and the Rio Grande includes a before and after interactive map which shows the National Wildlife Refuge areas which are currently accessible, but will be cut-off by Trump's wall.

Another interactive map uses aerial imagery to take you on a tour of the route of Trump's proposed wall in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. This tour shows you where the existing border fences, walls and other barriers exist and where it is proposed to build new barriers. Some of these new barriers will be built two miles in from the border and cut off state & federal land and land which is privately owned. The tour along the border looks at some of the important wildlife areas which will be affected by Trump's wall, including the National Butterfly Center.

Cutting off these areas will have an impact on the wildlife habitat of the rare, endangered and threatened species of the area. As well as having a huge effect on people's access to wildlife areas the new proposed wall will also stop many individuals from easily accessing their own private property, including many farms and businesses.