Do Not be Fooled: “Alligator Alcatraz” is a Federal Project.

By: Steven Abreu Quintana, Associate Editor 2026-2027        |        October 13, 2026

A small and isolated airstrip used to sit in the middle of the Everglades, the kind of place most Floridians could not find on a map. [1] In June 2025, that airstrip was transformed into “Alligator Alcatraz”—a facility that would detain immigrants alleged to be unlawfully present in the United States. [1, 2, 2] Construction began within days of the decision. [3] Detainees arrived within weeks.[4] An environmental review never arrived at all.[1, 5]

Nine months later, in Friends of the Everglades v. Secretary of the United States Department of Homeland Security, three judges on the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals decided whether the failure to conduct the environmental review mattered. [6] Two of the judges concluded that it did not, and that because the state built the detention facility, the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) did not apply. [7] NEPA only requires federal agencies responsible for infrastructure projects to “prepare an environmental impact statement that addresses the significant environmental effects of a proposed project.” [8] Here, the court determined that there is no federal involvement in Alligator Alcatraz because it was a state project, on state land, built with state money. [9] That determination deserves scrutiny. 

When State Action Becomes Federal Action

Triggering NEPA requires federal involvement. [10]  In 2023, Congress amended NEPA to exclude non-federal projects from the statute’s reach when the federal involvement is so “minimal” that it would be impossible for “a federal agency [to] control the outcome of the project.” [11] The amendments clarified that non-federal action turns into federal action “only when both federal funding and federal control are present.” [12] Determining whether the federal government can be tied to an infrastructure project is straightforward: the project must have substantial federal funding and substantial federal control. [13] The two judges erred, not in their interpretation of the amendments, but in their conclusion that the federal government has “no or minimal” control over Alligator Alcatraz, a facility intended to detain immigrants. [14] 

What The Record Actually Shows

Examining the district court’s findings leads to a different conclusion: the federal government had substantial control over Alligator Alcatraz. The district court created an extensive record by hearing from experts, residents, and even state representatives. [15] The court identified that because immigration enforcement is primarily within the province of the federal government, a facility that detains immigrants will have a significant number of federal agents present. [16] Testifying in the hearing, state representative Ana Eskamani recounted how, during a visit, she learned that construction of the facility was the product of a request made by the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”), and that agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) had a central role in the operation of the facility. [17] Both of these are federal agencies, created and delegated power by the Executive Branch. [18, 18] The representative’s testimony was right on point. The court also found that the detention facility operates using ICE detention standards. [19] Florida law enforcement officers do not arrest and detain immigrants by their own initiative. [20] Instead, they turn to ICE, which directs them on whether to detain people suspected of immigration violations into custody. [21] The court also found that ICE maintains custody of the detainees, and that federal agents—not state agents—physically transport detainees in and out of the facility. [22] And deport the detainees by using federally owned aircraft. [23] The court also noted that DHS is required to provide direction and supervision to local law enforcement officers when taking immigration enforcement action. [24] These are just a few examples of the substantial presence of the federal government at Alligator Alcatraz. Such ignorance allows the federal government to violate its statutory commitments requiring it to protect the environment under NEPA.

The Environmental Cost

The court’s environmental findings were alarming. It found that construction of the facility created 800,000 feet of water-resistant surface that will increase runoff into the surrounding wetlands, threatening the movement, distribution, and the quality of the Everglades’ water. [25] This runoff impacts not only the wetlands ecosystem, but also the local communities, one of which is the Miccosukee Tribe. [26] Water from the facility joins the Tribe’s water supply, risking contamination of the water the Tribe uses in its residences, schools, government buildings, and businesses. [27] The project also exacerbates habitat loss, which in turn creates irreparable harm to endangered species in the area. [28] Lighting from the site, for instance, will likely reduce the panther's habitat by 2,000 acres. [29] The heavy facility traffic will place panthers at unavoidable risk of fatal vehicle strikes. [30] Lighting from the facility will also affect the habitat of the eastern black rail and the bonneted bat, both of which are nocturnal and endangered. [31] 

This intense damage to the environment could have been avoided, had the federal government complied with its statutory requirements, NEPA would have likely triggered impacting the construction of the facility. But perhaps that was the federal government’s goal all along, to use Florida as a puppet, as an excuse to build a detention facility without accountability. [32]  

Closed, Not Resolved

The federal government’s reach in this project was visible when the facility closed. In May 2026, news outlets reported that Florida planned to scale back activity at the site amid mounting legal challenges, rising costs, and allegations of inhumane conditions. [33] The governor acknowledged discussions with the Trump administration about ending the program. [34] A month later, he announced the facility’s closure at a press conference. [35] White House border czar Tom Homan, standing beside him, confirmed that it was not “the end of the relationship,” but a “continuation.” [36] Attorneys for Friends of the Everglades, reacting to the facility’s closure made clear that “[t]he law will not allow them to escape accountability.”[37] But what is clear is that the decision to close Alligator Alcatraz, like the decision to build it, was never just Florida’s to make; a federal official stood beside the governor to say so himself.