Deciding that 58 percent of the mysterious symbols built during pre-Columbian times and visible only from the sky was enough to impress the aliens they were meant to attract, Peru’s government have reduced the size of the national park containing the Nazca Lines, the AP reports.
The move now opens the portion of the barren desert wasteland up for “informal mining operations” but still supposedly complies with the UNESCO World Heritage site’s designation. Still, those partial to Giorgio Tsoukalos’s favorite spot in the country claim that the ancient wonder is imperiled.
“The reduction not only removes protections – it does so precisely where extractive activity is expanding,” said Peru’s former vice minister of the environment, Mariano Castro, adding the move “is made worse by the ministry of culture’s failure to consider the cumulative impact of dozens or even hundreds of mining operations on sensitive archaeological zones.” The Peruvian mining industry did not respond to the concerns with a statement like “we will totally stop mining when aliens show up and sign a deal to use their craft to perform laser light shows every evening at 8:00 PM. Like the fucking second they do it. We can make a lot more money charging people for parking than digging for silver with goddamned pickaxes,” though it sounds like it’d be a sweet deal for all involved.