Oregon Man Arrested For Putting His Own 'Trash Filters' Over Pipes

A 2017 mugshot of Raymond Furr. Photo: Coos County Sheriff's Office

An Oregon man was arrested after authorities allegedly found his self-made "trash filters" on a stormwater discharge pipe, KATU says.

Florence Police claims Raymond Furr placed his trash filters on the pipe under the Siuslaw River Bridge. Officers also allege that Furr removed the rip rap material that protects the stormwater pipe outfall. This material helps disperse the force of the stormwater and protect the river bottom from scouring, or eroding away, reporters explained.

"If left unchecked this erosion, combined with the action of the river, can lead to the failure of the bridge bents of the Siuslaw River Bridge," authorities said in a statement. "Furr’s placement of his 'filter' during a storm event scoured a significant trench out into the river."

Furr was previously warned by city officials that such acts require a formal permit, cops say, "but that direction was ignored."

You can read more about these incidents here.

This wasn't Furr's first run-in with the law for environmental reasons. Back in 2017, Furr was taken into custody on charges of trespassing, burglary, and other charges while collecting garbage on Coos County roads, The World reports. Authorities claim he was illegally squatting in an empty home with another woman.

"Furr is the founder of the group Leaven No Trace, which has a mission of picking up garbage on Coos County's back roads, but which has frequently run afoul of county officials for illegal roadside dumping," reporters say.


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