The Department of Homeland Security issued a waiver from a number of environmental rules and regulations in order to build a prototype of a U.S.-Mexico border wall in San Diego.
"The Department is implementing President Trump's Executive Order 13767, Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements, and continues to take steps to immediately plan, design, and construct a physical wall along the southern border, using appropriate materials and technology to most effectively achieve complete operational control of the southern border," DHS said in a statement released Tuesday.
Outdated fencing in the San Diego area would be replaced and the finished prototype could be used for future construction designs elsewhere along the border, according to the statement.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection had announced in June that prototypes would be built in San Diego.
The Trump administration said Thursday that the prototypes have been delayed until November because two contractors issued objections to the bidding process.
In the statement, DHS also noted its success in capturing illegal aliens and taking action against drug trafficking in the San Diego area.
"The waiver covers certain border infrastructure projects in the United States Border Patrol's San Diego Sector, one of the busiest sectors in the nation. In fiscal year 2016 alone, the United States Border Patrol apprehended more than 31,000 illegal aliens and seized 9,167 pounds of marijuana and 1,317 pounds of cocaine in the San Diego sector," the statement read.
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