In this episode, I interview Bob Krumenaker, retired Big Bend National Park superintendent, about the recently proposed Big Bend border wall and its implications. Bob describes Big Bend’s desert, Chisos Mountains, and the Rio Grande riparian corridor, emphasizing biodiversity, cross-border wildlife movement, and the park’s international protected-area status. He argues Big Bend has the lowest illegal crossing activity on the southern border—about 200 apprehensions annually within the park—and says a 30-foot bollard wall would require new roads, towers, lighting, and secondary barriers, harming wilderness character, dark skies, river access, and wildlife. The discussion covers existing surveillance infrastructure, an MOU guiding Border Patrol conduct, prior wall impacts in Organ Pipe and Coronado, and a nonpartisan coalition opposing the wall while supporting less intrusive, cooperative technology. Bob also outlines advocacy steps and links the fight to long-stalled wilderness designation efforts.

Capitol Switchboard Number - (202) 224-3121

00:56 Episode Preview

02:12 Support the Podcast

03:03 Meet Bob Krumenaker

03:26 Career Path to Superintendent

04:56 Advocacy Inside NPS

06:48 Park Service Mission and Management

11:43 Pivot to Big Bend Tenure

13:57 Big Bend Ecosystems Overview

16:30 Sky Islands and Rare Species

17:41 Wildlife Comebacks and Connectivity

19:49 Crossings Data and Border Patrol Role

21:58 Wall Impacts in Other Parks

26:00 MOU and Working with Border Patrol

27:53 Wall Proposal Timeline and Map Changes

33:00 What a Wall Would Build

35:20 River Access At Risk

36:21 What Smart Wall Means

38:57 Surveillance Tradeoffs

42:15 How Crossings Really Work

45:46 Coalition Against The Wall

54:01 Wilderness History And Future

01:00:18 How You Can Help

01:03:05 Why Public Lands Matter

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