The Biden Administration has filed a lawsuit against Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott after his latest effort to curb illegal immigration across the Rio Grande River near Eagle Pass. Earlier this month, Governor Abbott began the installation of a 1000-foot floating barrier on the Rio Grande.

The floating buoys are designed to keep migrants from crossing into the state. However, those opposed to the governor's efforts say that the barrier will just push migrants toward deeper ends of the river, creating a greater risk of drowning for vulnerable migrants such as mothers and young children.

The lawsuit was filed on Monday in an Austin federal court by the Justice Department, arguing that the buoys, which are bright orange and the size of wrecking balls, pose humanitarian and environmental concerns. The Justice Department also argues that Governor Abbott illegally installed the buoys after failing to seek approval from the federal government.

According to the Justice Department's lawsuit, the buoys were deployed without going through the proper channels, including notifying the International Boundary and Water Commission or the US Army Corp of Engineers. The Mexican government has also voiced its concerns, asking the US federal government to intervene because the buoys violate International treaties.

“Because Texas installed the Floating Barrier without seeking the Corps’ authorization, the Corps and other relevant federal agencies were deprived of the opportunity to evaluate risks the barrier poses to public safety and the environment, mitigate those risks as necessary through the permitting process, and otherwise evaluate whether the project is in the public interest,” the lawsuit reads.

The buoys are part of a greater plan put together by Governor Abbott in his attempt to slow down border crossings. In addition to the buoys, razor wire has been installed along parts of the Rio Grande to deter migrants from crossing. Abbott's plan also puts greater effort into arresting migrants, charging them with trespassing, and bussing them to democratic-led cities including New York and Washington D.C.

Governor Abbott has responded to the lawsuit in a letter that outlined his state's right to take such drastic measures. The governor maintains his right to defend the state both under the federal constitution and the Texas constitution.

Abbot explains in his letter, “The fact is, if you would just enforce the immigration laws Congress already has on the books, America would not be suffering from your record-breaking level of illegal immigration.” Abbott adds, “While I share the humanitarian concerns noted in your lawyers’ letter, Mr. President, your finger points in the wrong direction. Neither of us wants to see another death in the Rio Grande River. Yet your open-border policies encourage migrants to risk their lives by crossing illegally through the water, instead of safely and legally at a port of entry. Nobody drowns on a bridge.”

Abbott maintains that if he does not win in the lower courts, he will appeal the decision all the way up to the Supreme Court.

Illegal border crossings have declined since May after new immigration restrictions and limitations went into effect. A full month after the new restrictions, U.S. Customs and Border Protection shared that illegal border crossings went down about 30% from the previous month. Border crossings were also the lowest they have ever been since Biden first took office.