Huge border costs yielding mixed results
HIDALGO, Texas — Perched 20 feet above a South Texas cabbage field in a telephone-booth-size capsule, a National Guardsman passes a moonlit Sunday night with a gun strapped to his hip, peering through heat-detector lenses into an adjacent orange grove.
Deployment of 1,200 National Guard soldiers for one year: $110 million.
This same night, farther west on the border, a milelong train groans to a stop halfway across a Rio Grande bridge.
In a nightly ritual, a Customs and Border Protection agent unlocks a gate, a railroad policeman slides the doors open, and they both wave flashlight beams under, over and in between the loads before they pass through an X-ray machine searching for people or drugs.
One rail-cargo X-ray screening machine: $1.75 million.
In southern Arizona, a screener examining tractor-trailer loads of charcoal spots something odd and asks for a closer look. Drug-sniffing dogs bark. He finds 8,000 pounds of baled marijuana in several trucks.
Customs and Border Protection officer average annual salary: $75,000. Drug-sniffing dog: $4,500.
As Congress debates border funding and as governors demand more assistance, The Associated Press has investigated what taxpayers spend securing the U.S.-Mexico border.
The price tag, until now, has not been public. But a tally based on White House budgets, reports obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests and congressional transcripts totals $90 billion in 10 years.
For taxpayers footing the bill, the returns have been mixed: fewer illegal immigrants but little impact on terrorism and no stoppage of the drug supply.
The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists didn't come from Mexico, but the attacks led politicians to re-examine border security. Ten days later, President Bush announced a new Department of Homeland Security, with tasks including the security of the nation's southern border.
During the next 10 years, annual border spending tripled as the U.S. built an unprecedented network along the 1,900-mile border with Mexico: 165 truck and train X-ray machines; 650 miles of heavy-duty fencing and sheer concrete walls; twice as many law-enforcement officers along the entire stretch, and a small fleet of Predator drones. Also, remote surveillance cameras, thermal-imaging devices and partially buried ground sensors that sound an alarm at headquarters if someone steps on one in the desert.
Early concerns that terrorists could sneak weapons into the U.S. from Mexico were overshadowed by worries about violent drug cartels slaughtering people across the Rio Grande. As the U.S. economy faltered, preventing illegal immigrants from sneaking north for jobs became the focus.
Concrete Fencing Pricing - News
During the next 10 years, annual border spending tripled as the US built an unprecedented network along the 1900-mile border with Mexico: 165 truck and train X-ray machines; 650 miles of heavy-duty fencing and sheer concrete walls; twice as many
Q. We are about to have our fence posts replaced and the question is: concrete or nothing as a base. I recall reading that nothing is best, but cannot remember where or why. Also, I painted some outdoor wood with oil-based paint — granted in cold,
Vining said the company, which had done a lot of concrete rehabilitation work, comes highly recommended. Chapman's crews will patch weakened areas of concrete throughout the home grandstand, create a system of handrails and fencing designed to make
Also, the pool needed new fencing and repairs to its concrete deck, he said. The pool attracted 8450 visitors in 2007, with revenue of about $8200. But last summer, the pool had 935 visits and $1200 in revenue. The drop could be related to the opening
So states are building dips or obstructions, such as wire fencing, into their medians. California is spending a total of $3 million a year for fencing alone, and is also planting long stretches of oleander bushes at $4000 a mile.
Cylinder-Shaped Concrete Fence
Q: My husband and I want to build a wall that runs 125' in length and 6' high down one side of our yard, and my husband had seen the cylinder shaped concrete stacked up in someone else's yard and would like to do that with our yard.
Do you know if there is anywhere that you can buy those (particularly in Tucson, Az or surrounding areas)? If you need to see a pic of what I am referring to you can see a small version of what we want at
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_seUqbj477A4/SnT8UZShakwI/AAAAAAAAAgg/6F2cSiOqF4k/...
or this at least shows what they look like....
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3221/2808939203_642f784570_z.jpg
and if possible, would you have any idea how many we would need, and the approximate cost?
I would appreciate any info you could give me concerning what we are looking for.
Thanks for your time.
A: Hi Tracy,
Thanks for taking the time to ask your question about the cylinder concrete posts. These are a great way for you to get a remarkably sharp looking fence, while adding in some security at the same time.
Some people will make these posts with their own mold, but as you will find that is going to be a tricky approach to take. I did some research and found a couple of companies in the Tucson area that might be able to help you.
The first is called Cemex and you can reach them at 520-744-1684 . This is a great company and you will find that they are able to give you some help with getting these concrete posts.
The other choice you are going to have is Cal Portland. Their phone number is 520-744-3222 .
From what I can find, the companies that supply these cylinders prefer to deal with contractors, so it makes it hard for the DIY enthusiast to find a set of options that will work for them.
What I would recommend is that if you know a contractor, take a moment to check with them and see if they are willing to help you get the parts you are going to need.
In terms of cost, what I can find based on your specifications you are looking at $2,000 - $8,000 .
The lower end will be with the assumption that you have access to the fencing materials and doing it on your own and the higher of course being installed for you.
Keep in mind that slopes on your property will adjust the overall price that you pay as well as your material needs.
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