A coalition of environmental groups filed a lawsuit Friday to prevent the federal government from opening a migrant detention center at an airstrip in Florida’s Big Cypress National Preserve. The detention center, dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz” because the alligators, panthers, and pythons in the surrounding swamp would deter escapes, was set to open next week.
The law firm Earthjustice represents the Center for Biological Diversity and the Friends of the Everglades. “The site is more than 96% wetlands, surrounded by Big Cypress National Preserve, and is habitat for the endangered Florida panther and other iconic species. This scheme is not only cruel, it threatens the Everglades ecosystem that state and federal taxpayers have spent billions to protect,” said Eve Samples, the executive director of Friends of the Everglades.
Tania Galloni, the managing attorney for the Florida office of Earthjustice, added, “This plan has had none of the environmental review that’s required by federal law. Cruelty aside, it defies common sense to put a mass of people, vehicles, and development in one of the most significant wetlands in the world. That’s why we’re going to court.”
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem praised Florida for suggesting the airstrip as a detention center. She stated: “They were willing to build it and do it much quicker than what some of the other vendors were. And it was a real solution that we’ll be able to utilize if we need to.”
“The state of Florida is all in on President Trump’s mission,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “There needs to be more ability to intake, process and deport.”
The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court Southern District of Florida, requests an injunction to halt all construction work at Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport (TNT Site). The injunction would remain until the federal government complies with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). It would also enjoin the same against Florida, acting as an agent of the federal government.
The complaint stated: “No environmental assessment or environmental impact statement has been prepared under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 4321, et seq., nor has the Division conducted any environmental review under Florida law … To Plaintiffs’ knowledge, no categorical exclusion from NEPA has been invoked by the Defendants, nor does any apply.”
The complaint also cites the potential danger to detainees and staff, saying: “The TNT Site is highly susceptible to flooding and no feasible plan has been studied to evacuate center detainees and personnel in the event of a hurricane or major flooding event.”
