An isolated corner of Starr County is now the site of the newest border wall construction project.

A botanist who spoke to Channel 5 News said the path that was cleared to make way for the wall was in the path of dozens of federally endangered plants.

“The impact that this had on that land is devastating, it's never going to come back,” botanist Joey Santore said.

Public records showed the state of Texas bought permanent property use rights from the private landowner for border wall construction.

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“That land was the best remaining wilderness in the Rio Grande Valley by far,” Santore said. “There were tons of really cool cactus species that occurred nowhere else in the United States."

Santore says that undisturbed land supported a rare native ecosystem and kept invasive plant species out.

Among the native plants were the federally endangered Zapata bladderpod, and the recently listed prostrate milkweed, Santore said.

“There were two federally endangered plant species at this ranch, and it didn't matter,” Santore said, adding that he saw the plants removed for the dirt road. “They were destroyed."

Channel 5 News reached out to the Texas Facilities Commission, which is heading this construction, what steps are taken when endangered species are encountered.

A spokesperson did not respond as of air time.

Environmental attorney David Smith said the law sets strict rules for federal projects. State and private projects have more leeway, and endangered plants and animals are handled differently.

“If you're undertaking a private project on private land, or state project on state land, or on private land -- and you have endangered plants that are going to be destroyed as a result of this otherwise legal project that you're undertaking, there's no take prohibition against destruction of those plant species,” Smith said. “However there would be against any animal species that you happen to run across."

Santore was not there when the endangered plants were surveyed and removed. The surveys and removals were done by other biologists. 

Santore said at least five prostrate milkweeds and 100 to 200 Zapata bladderpods were found and moved to private ranches and a botanical garden.

“It was just such a great sacrifice," Santore said.