Peru\u2019s decision to shrink its archeological park home to the famous Nazca Lines by around 42% \u2014 an area roughly the size of 1,400 soccer fields \u2014 has sparked alarm among conservationists, archaeologists and environmental advocates. <\/p>\n
Critics say the rollback paves the way for informal mining and weakens decades of cultural and ecological protection, while the government says the adjustment reflects updated scientific studies and does not compromise the UNESCO World Heritage status or the site\u2019s core protections. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe reduction not only removes protections \u2014 it does so precisely where extractive activity is expanding,\u201d said Mariano Castro, Peru\u2019s former vice minister of the environment, adding that the decision could cause \u201cvery serious risks and cumulative damage,\u201d as it excludes zones with active or pending mining claims. <\/p>\n
Castro added that safeguards for archaeological heritage during the formalization of artisanal mining are already limited. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis is made worse by the ministry of culture\u2019s failure to consider the cumulative impact of dozens or even hundreds of mining operations on sensitive archaeological zones,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
The area in question forms part of a UNESCO-recognized World Heritage Site, home to the Nazca Lines \u2014 massive geoglyphs etched into the desert thousands of years ago \u2014 and one of Peru\u2019s most fragile desert ecosystems. <\/p>\n
UNESCO told The Associated Press it hasn\u2019t been notified by Peruvian authorities of any changes to the boundaries of the World Heritage site, which are crucial for its protection. The organization will request more information from the authorities. <\/p>\n
Peruvian environmental lawyer C\u00e9sar Ipenza, who has closely followed the decision, said the resolution has already been approved and that it reduces the Nazca zone by more than 1,000 hectares. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a weakening of both environmental and cultural protections,\u201d Ipenza said. \u201cThe state should be upholding its commitments under international agreements, not yielding to private interests.\u201d <\/p>\n
Ipenza and others say the rollback reflects a pattern of regulatory concessions to mostly informal gold miners. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s an alliance between the current government and informal mining sectors,\u201d he said. \u201cThe legal framework continues to be relaxed to benefit them.\u201d <\/p>\n
Peru\u2019s ministry of culture, which decided on May 30 to reduce the Nazca reserve from about 5,600 square kilometers to roughly 3,200 square kilometers, declined to answer specific questions from the AP. Instead, it sent a press release saying the adjustment was based on updated archaeological studies and does not affect the UNESCO World Heritage designation or its buffer zone. <\/p>\n
The ministry said it remains committed to preserving the site\u2019s cultural heritage through regulated management. <\/p>\n
A day after the May 30 decision, Peru\u2019s Minister of Culture Fabricio Valencia acknowledged that illegal mining exists within the reserve. <\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately, informal mining is an activity present in this area, but the measure we have taken does not mean it will be encouraged, nor that the likelihood of any harm from informal mining will increase. That will not happen,\u201d Valencia said on RPP, one of Peru\u2019s largest radio programs. <\/p>\n
When asked for more details about the presence of illegal activity in the reserve, Valencia said, \u201cthere are some mining deposits, but I don\u2019t have exact information on what type of mineral is there.\u201d <\/p>\n
Castro, the former vice minister, warned the move could violate Peru\u2019s own laws. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt contravenes Article 5(h) of the Environmental Impact Assessment Law, which mandates the protection of archaeological and historical heritage,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
Ipenza said the government is enabling illegality under the guise of technical adjustments. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt is shameful to forget our ancestors and our heritage, and to disguise decisions that pave the way for sectors seeking to impose illegality, such as illegal and informal mining,\u201d he said. \u201cThis decision benefits those groups and harms all Peruvians.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Peru\u2019s decision to shrink its archeological park home to the famous Nazca Lines by around 42% \u2014 an area roughly the size of 1,400 soccer fields \u2014 has sparked alarm among conservationists, archaeologists and environmental advocates. Critics say the rollback paves the way for informal mining and weakens decades of cultural and ecological protection, while <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16938,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-16937","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16937","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16937"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16937\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16938"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16937"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16937"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16937"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}