MILITARY BORDER PROJECTS TO TARGET DRUG TRAFFICKING

Efforts continue after teen shot, patrols halted

WASHINGTON U.S. troops plan two major construction projects along the
TexasMexico border that officials say will help antidrug efforts.

Starting in January, about 600 Marines and Army soldiers will upgrade
roads, build a helicopter pad and add other improvements requested by
the U.S. Border Patrol, said Maureen Bossch, a spokeswoman for Joint
Task Force 6 in El Paso.

The task force has coordinated a number of such projects along the
border as part of the Pentagon's effort to support Border Patrol and
Customs agents. The construction projects, including a recent road
project in California, have continued despite the suspension of military
reconnaissance patrols along the frontier.

The Pentagon suspended the foot patrols after a unit of Marines shot a
teenager who was herding his family's goats near Redford on May 20. A
grand jury declined to indict the Marine's unit leader, who said the
troops fired only after the teenager shot his rifle in their direction.

Now the Marines plan to improve 42 miles of dirt road about 80 miles
north of Redford, outside the small community of Candelaria, said Border
Patrol Chief Simon Garza in Marfa.

The Border Patrol held a town meeting in Marfa on Monday to solicit
community support for the project, which comes after three years of
planning. Some residents expressed concern about the military presence,
particularly in light of the Redford shooting, Chief Garza said.

"I told them the two things have nothing in common," he said.

The Marine reconnaissance unit was armed and operated covertly when the
shooting occurred. The Marine engineers will carry no arms and are
improving a road that the county also wanted fixed but couldn't afford
to repair.

"The road is so bad that our vehicles get damaged when they patrol that
area," Chief Garza said.

About 250 Marines will rotate through the project, which is expected to
take three months. Not all of the troops will be on site at the same
time.

Near Laredo, meanwhile, about 350 Army troops will rotate through a
threemonth project to improve about 62 miles of rough road along the
border, Ms. Bossch said. The troops also will build a helicopter pad and
perhaps shore up an observation tower used by the Border Patrol.

The military draws the troops from engineering units that volunteer for
the field experience.

"The troops love it," Ms. Bossch said. "There's only so many times that
you can build up and tear down a building on base before it begins to
lose its training value."