The Bureau of Land Management has posted a $1,000 prize to aid with the search for a pair who were caught carving into an old cultural site along Wire Pass Trail and Buckskin Gulch near the Utah-Arizona border.
According to Unofficial Networks, the agency responded immediately after obtaining photographic evidence of a petroglyph defacement on November 23.
According to KSL.com, investigators verified that the perpetrator was apprehended in St. George on November 30 and jailed on a federal warrant.
The petroglyphs are estimated by Bureau archaeologists to be between 3,000 and 5,000 years old, going back to the pre-agricultural Archaic Period. Estimates place the damage at roughly $7,000.
What’s awful is that this isn’t an isolated incident. Vandalism has become all too widespread in the “age of information,” when we should all know better.
A TikToker discovered fresh defacement in Navajo Tribal Park. A couple is facing federal charges for causing damage and theft at a Canyonlands National Park restricted site.
Historical landmarks, national parks, and nature in general should be respected so that future generations can enjoy them. Knowing the regulations and expectations before you go will help keep you safe and avoid legal implications.
It is crucial to remember that many of these rules are also intended to protect local species. Frequently, they face the ultimate consequences of human activities for simply doing what comes naturally to them.
Harry Barber, district manager of the bureau’s Paria River district, was quoted by KSL.com as saying, “I appreciate that our public enjoys getting out and using public lands. It disturbs me when people take matters into their own hands and believe they can do things that are not legal.”
According to David Hercher, a public affairs specialist with the Bureau of Land Management, vandalism damages important elements of history and cultural legacy that are valuable to Indigenous nations, historians, and local communities alike.
(It) is not simply a criminal punishable by law, but also a damaging habit with long-term ramifications that can never be fully restored.”