Another perspective of the Immigration issue

There is much uproar over Arizona's new law allowing police to stop people on the street and demand citizenship or visa papers in an effort to identify illegal aliens. The solution is beyond my powers of wisdom and knowledge. Though the law does seem to go against our right of freedom and does smack of fascism, I can also understand the position of the State Arizona. Our federal government has been wishy-washy about immigration for decades, and though many laws are on the books, they are not being rigorously enforced at the federal level. The issue of illegals currently in residence is also in murky waters. These two political footballs have been punted and passed and fumbled for decades by the feds, with the ultimate result being that the states near the border suffer. 

The hundreds of miles of fencing erected over the years protect large sections of California and Texas, but the fences simply funnel the border-jumpers into Arizona's Sonoran desert and thus the problem becomes Arizona's by default. Since the feds refuse to accept responsibility, what should Arizona do? I come at this issue from a different perspective due to my passion for the outdoors and my love of the arid Southwest deserts: I view the issue from an environmental angle. This area in the photos below is located on an illegal "superhighway" from Mexico to the USA. It is in a wash (a normally dry gully which carries rain water to the river) -- a wash that is over a half mile long, just south of Tucson, Arizona. The illegals have walked 25 miles through the desert to get to this spot and from here they see the city lights and know they are close to the vehicle that will transport them deeper into the USA. They have been carrying backpacks with food, water, and a change of clothes, and the backpacks and soiled clothes are discarded and excess supplies are simply dropped here. Over 3000 backpacks were counted in this one messy area, as well as countless water containers, food wrappers, clothing, feces, and thousands of soiled baby diapers -- and around every bend out of the camera's view is more and more such trash.

Besides despoiling the beautiful desert, if a flood came, all this debris would be washed to the river and then into the sea. According to snopes.com, these photos were taken by Lance Altherr, the Tuscon Chapter leader of the Minutemen Civil Defense Corps, at a "layover" area used by the illegals just south of Amado, Arizona. We've all heard the political wrangling on all sides of this heated issue, but the overlooked consequence of all these federal immigration in-decisions is one which affects the environment of the Sonoran Desert in general and one of our national parks in particular, Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. Here is a photo taken in the national park... The National Park Service website for Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument displays this warning: "Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is an attractive place, and not just for its scenery. Every year thousands of people are attracted to this remote location for its apparent ease with which they can illegally enter the USA. Away from the development at Lukeville, the remoteness of our international boundary is impossible to effectively patrol. Under the cover of darkness, dozens of paths in the park become a freeway filled with illegal foot and vehicle traffic." "They come from Latin America, Asia, the Middle-East, and the rest of the world. They come for a variety of reasons -- to find work, to escape persecution, to avoid scrutiny of immigration, to bring illegal drugs to an insatiable American market, or to infiltrate mainstream "American" culture." "Most immigrants are unprepared for the rigors of crossing the Sonoran Desert. They carry a few possessions, a little food, and even less water. They are unaware they are crossing a national monument, a place dedicated to preservation for present and future generations. They may be unsure of the exact route and merely follow the footsteps of others. As a result, the monument's wilderness is laced with hundreds of miles of unofficial roads and trails. Migrants will often discard in the desert what they no longer need for their journey north."

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These routes are usually lined with empty water jugs and other discarded items. Immigrants frequently rest or camp in the most desirable places -- under trees -- the very same places where cactus seedlings germinate. Immigrants collect wood and build small cooking fires, but these fires also cook shallow cactus roots. Trash heaps at these sites are not only unsightly but are also unsanitary and attract a variety of scavenger wildlife. Nearby water sources are often so fouled by pollution that wildlife can no longer use them. Some overnight rest stops are so heavily used that the damage is irreparable. During the rainy seasons, vehicle routes become avenues for flood waters, further increasing the resource damage." 

 "As a result of illegal immigrants crossing out borders, other unlawful acts do occur within the monument. Some of the illegals are armed, dangerous, and determined to complete the trip at any cost. Most often these few are smugglers and drug runners. They may drive a stolen vehicle or they may hire human "mules" to carry their contraband in homemade backpacks. Other illegals may be opportunistic, not intending harm, but the struggle is long and the temptations are numerous. Though most criminals operate after dark and in remote areas of the park, they have been apprehended in areas frequented by visitors." I can't help but wonder: If these actions had been done in one of our country's beautiful national forests, or one of our national seashores, or one of our national lakeshores, or your neighborhood parks or preserves, there would be news reports and pictures on CNN, ABC, and NBC decrying the despoiling, leading to an uprising of the American people demanding an end to the ecological destruction. But what? Since this is merely the Arizona-Mexican border and merely an arid desert, it's OK? What do you say?