Nazca lines are a set of monumental geoglyphs drawn on the surface of the Nazca desert, in southern Peru, between around 500 BC. AD and 500 AD. AD, by Nazca and Paracas civilizations. This means the importance of this site. However, the Peruvian state has just decreased the 40 % site of the 40 % of 5,600 km² to 3,200 km². This decision provoked the anger of archaeologists and environmentalists attached to the preservation of the site.
According to them, there is not enough studies demonstrating that the site does not conceal other elements with archaeological value. The government affirms the opposite, without having consulted scientists.
This decision opens the way to mining companies for some illegally established in the region. The State has granted 300 concessions in the area concerned, advancing the argument that these mines are now legal. The rise in the price of rare metals and the pressure of private interests may have influenced this sudden decision.
The proximity of the mines with the site could have harmful consequences: dust raised and geological upheavals may damage the long -term geoglyphs. In addition, archaeologists alert on the irreversibility of such a decision for the entire site.
The Nazca lines were discovered in 1927 by Toribio Mejía XESSPE while he flew over the region. Thereafter, other figures were uncovered. There are officially between 300 and 350, but in 2023, a Japanese team identified an additional 303 thanks to artificial intelligence.
Registered since 1994 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the site worries the agency which fears an effective loss of protection. It was not consulted before this decision. Major tourist destination, attracting tens of thousands of visitors each year, the site could suffer from the proximity of mines.
