Peru Indignant After Greenpeace Damages Ancient Nazca Site

HughPickens.com writes The NYT reports that Peruvian authorities say Greenpeace activists have damaged the fragile, and restricted, landscape near the Nazca lines, ancient man-made designs etched in the Peruvian desert when they placed a large sign that promoted renewable energy near a set of lines that form the shape of a giant hummingbird. The sign was meant to draw the attention of world leaders, reporters and others who were in Lima, the Peruvian capital, for a United Nations summit meeting aimed at reaching an agreement to address climate change. Greenpeace issued a statement apologizing for the stunt at the archaeological site and its international executive director, Kumi Naidoo, flew to Lima to apologize for scarring one of Peru's most treasured national symbols. "We are not ready to accept apologies from anybody," says Luis Jaime Castillo, the vice minister for cultural heritage. "Let them apologize after they repair the damage." "But repair may not be possible. The desert around the lines is made up of white sand capped by a darker rocky layer. By walking through the desert the interlopers disturbed the upper layer, exposing the lighter sand below. Visits to the site are closely supervised — ministers and presidents have to seek special permission and special footwear to tread on the fragile ground where the 1,500 year old lines are cut. "A bad step, a heavy step, what it does is that it marks the ground forever," says Castillo. "There is no known technique to restore it the way it was." Castillo says that the group walked in single file through the desert, meaning that they made a deep track in the ground then they spread out in the area where they laid the letters, making many more marks over a wide area. "The hummingbird was in a pristine area, untouched,". Castillo added. "Perhaps it was the best figure."

Comments

Cage fight!

[ScentCone]

We need a PETA vs Greenpeace death-by-irony cage fight.

"It appears my hypocrisy knows no bounds." -Doc Holliday

Re:Cage fight!

[Anonymous Coward]

And a barbecue afterwards? Long pig, slow roasted, by People for Eating Tasty Animals?

Although long pig, like goat, raccoon, bears, and other omnivores is pretty gamey. High urea content. And some of the less dietitically sane members are a little on the lean side, so they'd need a good marinade. And you *know* a lot of PETA's "go vegetarian, lose weight" members are, themselves packing a whole winter's weight of fine bacon in their well well loaded trunk.

Oh No

[rossdee]

The Aliens will never find out where to land now

Re:Oh No

[Applehu Akbar]

I was hoping the aliens would swoop in and carry off the Greenpeacers. No group more richly deserves an anal probing.

Re: What the hell is wrong with Millennials?!

[chuckymonkey]

Are you upset? You seem upset.

Re:The Paradigm

[michelcolman]

Nah, it was a genuine mistake. They've already laid down a new set of big yellow letters saying "We are truly sorry for disturbing your national heritage site. Greepeace."