In Oregon’s Deschutes National Forest, the National Forest Service is gearing up to undertake essential forest maintenance. Clearing out brush and executing controlled burns, which form the basis of this project, play a crucial role in maintaining forest health and mitigating the risk of rampant wildfires.

What’s baffling about this is that it’s necessary to clean out a massive, trash-strewn homeless encampment before the work can begin.

On Thursday, the U.S. Forest Service began evicting dozens of homeless individuals who have resided in a national forest in central Oregon for several years. This action comes as part of a wildfire prevention initiative, which involves the removal of smaller trees, clearing debris, and conducting controlled burns across thousands of acres.

Although this project has been planned for many years, the decision to clear the encampment in the Deschutes National Forest follows an executive order issued two months ago by the Trump administration. This order directed federal agencies to enhance timber production and implement forest management projects to lower wildfire risks. 

Deschutes National Forest spokesperson Kaitlyn Webb said in an email that the closure order was “directly tied to the forest restoration work.” Homeless advocates, meanwhile, seized on the timing on Thursday as U.S. Forest Service officers blocked the access road.

Let’s get one thing straight: These people are not being “evicted.” “Evicted” implies that they had some legal right to be there in the first place. They are trespassing, they are breaking every environmental regulation in the Forest Service’s book regarding camping, and they are preventing legitimate use by taxpayers. Camping is legal in the National Forests, there is an allowable amount of time involved; most forests enforce a 14-day limit. Some of these people have been occupying this site for years.

Those limits are obviously not being enforced here, nor are the prohibitions on littering and dumping trash. Have a look:

This is part of a homeless encampment on National Forest Service land in Oregon. This is land that is supposed to be available for the American people, for recreation, but instead, it’s a junkyard, and the Forest Service allows it. pic.twitter.com/ubRiDN5wJ3

— Ward Clark (@TheGreatLander) May 2, 2025

Of course, the usual suspects are already thumping their chests and shouting about how unfair this is to the squatters occupying property that belongs to the American taxpayers, and which is supposedly available for recreational use.

Four people living in the encampment including (Mandy) Bryant, along with two homeless advocates, filed for a restraining order to stop the closure. The claim argued it would cause irreparable harm to more than 100 people who were living there, many of whom have disabilities.

Why are people with disabilities living in trash-strewn encampments out in the forest?