Policy Economics

Policy Economics
I read an article titled "Proposed Border Fence Could Face Environmental Obstacles in Texas." U.S. Congress approved a homeland security bill that would palce a fence along about 700 miles of the U.S. border with Mexico. The purpose of the fence is to control the flow of illegal immigration across theh U.S. Mexico border. The problem is that the plan could destroy habitats and cut off access to water for numerous animals, including the endangered ocelot and jarguarundi, ancestors to the bobcat. To assess this problem you have to compare the costs and benefits of a fence towards the immigration problem and toward the endangered species. The costs of the fence would be funds for construction, disturbance of economic traffic between border towns of the U.S. and Mexico and possible extinction of certain species. The benefits of a fence would be less illegal activity allowing the most vulnerable sectors of our poputlation better chances of succes. A fence could benefit by keeping public funds to those who pay taxes, thus giving future Amercias educatoin, health care, and retirement security. Addtionally the stress of overpopulation, straining natural resources like wter, energy and forestland, would not be present. The costs of putting up a fence for certain species could mean extinction. Gene pools could be altered because of lack of contact with the same species and the food chain could be altered. Benefits towards building a fence are hard to come by unless an interest group implements some type of policy that provides money to reallocate as much of a species to a designated plot of land, not much can benefit from the fence species wise. I think that building a fence will benefit society better than leaving an open boarder. Will the contiuation of the Ocelot species continue life for me? Can i live without the Ocelot? I believe i can and i believe that the problem with illegal immigration is far more important than that of the endangered species along the Mexican/Amercian border. But if people recieve some benefit or incentive from these animals then they should be active in making a policy decision that would allow for both to occur.