Gov. Ducey agrees to remove some shipping containers at Arizona-Mexico border

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) -- After the U.S. government sued Gov. Doug Ducey and the state last week for placing shipping containers at the border, Ducey agreed to remove some of them on Wednesday afternoon. The state has agreed to stop border container construction in national forest areas and remove containers from federal and reservation land at the Arizona-Mexico border.

The shipping containers will start to be removed on Jan. 4 so they don’t damage lands, properties and natural resources. According to Gov. Ducey’s spokesman C.J. Karamargin, the work stoppage isn’t new, but both sides want to preserve the Coronado National Forest. Karamargin says the removal of containers comes after the Biden administration said construction for a barrier will begin soon. “For over a year, the federal government has been touting their effort to building a border barrier. Better late than never, and we’re working with the federal government to ensure they can begin construction with urgency,” Karamargin said in a statement to Arizona’s Family.

The government previously sued the state, saying the containers were trespassing on federal lands. Ducey said the shipping containers were only meant to be a temporary barrier.

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