Customs and Border Protection ordered contractors to stop drilling new wells in New Mexico's bootheel region after ranchers complained about groundwater use for the border wall project.
Mixing concrete for border wall construction can require tens of thousands of gallons of water per mile of wall built.
New Mexico's Hidalgo County, where much of the current wall construction is happening, has been under persistent drought conditions tracked by the U.S. Drought Monitor in 2024–2025.
Congress appropriated roughly $46.5 billion for border wall construction and related border security in the 2025 reconciliation package signed by President Trump.
The federal government waived dozens of environmental laws, including the Safe Drinking Water Act and NEPA reviews, to speed border wall construction in previous rounds under a 2005 REAL ID Act authority.