DOJ threatens to sue Texas if Rio Grande floating barrier isn’t removed

The Justice Department has said it plans to sue Texas if the state doesn’t remove the 1,000-foot floating barrier it placed in the Rio Grande river in a bid to deter illegal immigrants from crossing the US border.

The threat of legal action was made in a letter sent to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott by the Biden administration on Thursday.

The barrier of wrecking ball-sized buoys, which was strung up earlier this month near the border town of Eagle Pass, was “unlawful” and violated federal law, the letter charged.

“The State of Texas’s actions violate federal law, raise humanitarian concerns, present serious risks to public safety and the environment, and may interfere with the federal government’s ability to carry out its official duties,” it said.

Gov. Abbott fired back on Twitter, insisting: “Texas has the sovereign authority to defend our border, under the US Constitution and the Texas Constitution.”

“We have sent the Biden Administration numerous letters detailing our authority, including the one I hand-delivered to President Biden earlier this year,” he continued.

The floating barrier was initially installed near Eagle Pass — an illegal crossing hot spot.

But it’s designed to be moved and extended to cover other parts of the Rio Grande if necessary, Abbott said when he first announced the move.

The huge orange buoys, which measure 4-feet each, sit a foot below the water and are anchored to the riverbed.

“Most [migrants], they don’t want to go under water, they’re trying to scale over, like a wall,” Texas Department of Public Safety Spokesman Lt. Chris Olivarez told The Post last week.

“Especially with children, I think it’s going to be most effective with families who are trying to come across. Across the board, we want to prevent people from crossing the river in the first place.”

The buoys are just the latest move in Abbott’s multibillion-dollar operation to try and secure the Lone Star state’s border with Mexico.

Other escalations have included razor-wire fencing and arresting a slew of migrants on trespassing charges.

Abbott’s mission — dubbed Operation Lone Star — came under scrutiny after a Texas trooper claimed migrants had been denied water and they’d been given orders to push border crossers back into the Rio Grande.

The Texas Department of Public Safety said the trooper’s allegations, which were made in an email to a supervisor, were under internal investigation.

With Post wires