Photos Of Damage Caused By Oregon Occupiers Proves They Aren't Fit To Manage Anything

The small government advocates left behind a big, expensive mess for taxpayers.
  • The occupation has already cost upwards of $9 million.
  • Feces and trash litter the property.
  • Officials are worried Native American artifacts have been damaged.

The Malheur National Wildlife Refuge "occupation" ended more than a month ago, yet the damage caused by the armed militants, who gathered to protest the federal government's management of public lands, remains.

Photos posted online by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service earlier this week give a peek into how the occupiers would, apparently, prefer to manage public lands, given the chance to do it themselves:

Trash, broken camping equipment and a neglected car litter the area around the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
Trash, broken camping equipment and a neglected car litter the area around the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
US Fish and Wildlife Service

The total cost of the occupation stands at about $6 million to the federal government, in addition to $3 million already pitched in by the state of Oregon. Of that, said Jason Holm, Assistant Regional Director of USFWS, $1.7 million has been flagged just for repairs and cleaning of the reserve itself.

Holm warned the nearly $2 million cleanup cost is a "moving figure" subject to change as the agency conducts a thorough inventory of what's broken and missing.

Kindergartners do a better job picking up after themselves.
Kindergartners do a better job picking up after themselves.
US Fish and Wildlife Service

Holm told The Guardian the photos don’t really reveal the true extent of the damage.

“These pictures are a microcosm of how bad it really was,” he said.

On a tour Wednesday, members of the media were reportedly told to be mindful of where they stepped. After a pipe burst, militia members defecated "everywhere," officials told Oregon's KOIN 6 News.

A trench outside is full of feces:

"A trench dug as a latrine," Holm said, "the contents are as expected."
"A trench dug as a latrine," Holm said, "the contents are as expected."
US Fish and Wildlife Service

A report released in February by the FBI said "significant amounts of human feces" were found on-site after the occupiers surrendered, next to a "sensitive cultural site" containing artifacts sacred to the Burns Paiute Tribe.

Brown and red streaks of a substance Holm wasn't able to identify cover the floor and walls of a building.
Brown and red streaks of a substance Holm wasn't able to identify cover the floor and walls of a building.
US Fish and Wildlife Service

Holm said the wildlife refuge will recover eventually, but there's concern the militia members may have harmed Native American artifacts or destroyed other records, which are irreplaceable.

A broken wall at the wildlife refuge.
A broken wall at the wildlife refuge.
US Fish and Wildlife Service

"Nature is durable, it will be just fine," Holm said. "Buildings and property are fixable or replaceable --they'll be fine. The relationships with the community will strengthen as a result of this. However, damages to tribal artifacts would be heinous. And lost or missing biological data might be impossible to replicate."

An office is strewn with trash at the refuge.
An office is strewn with trash at the refuge.
US Fish and Wildlife Service

"Our refuge employees are thrilled to be back doing the job the American public expects of them," Holm added. "We are bolstered by the support of the communities in Harney County, where we live. And we are confident the relationships we've built over recent decades will only strengthen."

Another view of the trashed camp outside.
Another view of the trashed camp outside.
US Fish and Wildlife Service

At least 26 people have so far been charged with federal conspiracy for their roles in the armed occupation.

View more photos of the refuge taken by the US Fish and Wildlife Service below:

Before You Go

Damage at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge

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