Interior secretary calls bulldozing ancient Arizona site for border wall ‘a series of mistakes’

Arizona Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva used a Wednesday House hearing to press Interior Secretary Doug Burgum about the recent destruction of a 1,000-year-old archeological site along U.S.-Mexico border.

The House Natural Resources Committee met to review President Donald Trump’s funding proposal for the Interior Department, but the southern Arizona Democratic congresswoman took that opportunity to talk about Las Playas Intaglio.

When Grijalva asked whether the federal agency consulted with the Tohono O’odham Nation before construction began, Burgum did not directly answer her question, but went on to say that the U.S. tried making amends.

Burgum testified that federal officials — including DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin as well as Customs and Border Patrol Commissioner Rodney Scott — both apologized to tribal leadership weeks after a border wall contractor bulldozed Las Playas Intaglio along the U.S.-Mexico boundary.

Russ McSpadden

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Center for Biological Diversity

“This is a super unfortunate thing that happened,” said Burgum, adding “There’s a series of mistakes that happened along the way — zero intention — and we’ve delivered direct apologies.”

But Grijalva stressed words aren’t enough.

“I mean, unfortunately, once it’s destroyed, you can’t undo that.”

Now, Grijalva fears another O’odham cultural site of concern, a desert oasis called Quitobaquito Springs, could be damaged next. It sits inside just south of Ajo, inside Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.

“So will you commit that U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service avoid Quitobaquito Springs,” asked Grijalva, “and minimize impact by not using groundwater within 5 miles — and monitor those water levels closely as the border wall is being built?”

“Well, I — that’s a very specific thing,” Burgum replied, “that I won’t jump ahead and commit to without fully understanding all the complexities that you can account, but we’re going to stay close to this issue.”