The construction of a temporary center for migrant detention in Everglades, Florida, was temporarily suspended by a Federal Court on Thursday, after conservation groups claim that state and federal agencies violated environmental legislation by rapidly building installation in an ecologically sensitive area.
Judge Kathleen Williams of the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida has issued a temporary restriction order, concluding that the Immigration and Customs Encarcement (ICE) and the Florida Emergency Management Division probably violated the National Environmental Policy Law (NEA) when they did not perform an environmental assessment.
The court order prevents new work on what State Attorney General James Uthmeier called “Alcatraz dos alligators”, an installation located in a small airport surrounded by the Big Cypress National Reserve. ICE has already transferred migrants to the center and has performed deportation flights. The order allows detainees to remain on site, but prohibits workers from adding new infrastructure for two weeks.
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The Friends of the Everglades organizations and the Center for Biological Diversity requested an accelerated court order, arguing that the government was working on a “frantic rhythm” and that judicial intervention was needed to prevent damage to an ecologically fragile area.
The landing lane site consists of more than 96% of wet areas and is surrounded by federally protected habitats for threatened and endangered species, including Florida Panther, according to the lawsuit.
The environmental challenge to NEA opens a new front against President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda. Florida’s Emergency Management Division took control of the track site in June, coordinating with the DHS Department (DHS), under pressure from White House Deputy Cabinet, Stephen Miller, to meet a goal of 3,000 arrests per day.
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Trump visited the scene in July, accompanied by Florida’s governor, Ron Desantis (R), and DHS secretary Kristi Noem.
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