Big Bend National Park could soon be 6,000 acres bigger

The largest national park in Texas may soon get even bigger.

Big Bend National Park could soon expand after the bipartisan Big Bend National Park Boundary Adjustment Act passed the Senate unanimously on June 18. The act authorizes the National Park Service to acquire around 6,100 acres, according to a news release posted by three members of Congress on June 20.

The act, having passed the Senate, will now go back to the House of Representatives before heading to President Donald Trump’s desk.

The park, which already encompasses more than 800,000 acres, could soon add land adjacent to Terlingua Creek, which is located along the western section of the park.

“There is no better example of Texas’s natural beauty and vibrant wildlife than Big Bend National Park, and I’m glad the Senate has passed our bill unanimously so that all Americans can continue to enjoy it,” Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said in the release.

But the land acquisition comes with some conditions. According to the release, the National Park Service can only acquire the land through a donation or an exchange, with the service prohibited from using eminent domain to secure the land.

Possible expansion comes amid cuts to NPS

The potential land expansion at Big Bend National Park comes as the Trump administration has cut staffing to the National Park Service across the U.S.

Earlier this year, the Trump administration laid off and then rehired 1,000 probationary workers. The National Parks Conservation Association said that parks are “already stretched thin.”

“Without urgent action to restore staffing and resources, our parks — and the people who protect them — could be pushed to the breaking point,” NPCA wrote earlier this month.

USA TODAY’s Trevor Hughes contributed to this report.

Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at fernando.cervantes@gannett.com and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.