Current Issues
Rock art and other ancient artifacts are now protected by law and, although enforcement is difficult, outright looting and malicious vandalism are largely a thing of the past. Nine Mile Canyon's rock art, however, is still at risk. Carved and painted mainly on weathered sandstone panels, the images are susceptible to erosion, which is accelerated by touching and airborne dust. The dust is a special concern as heavy industrial traffic in the canyon increases.
Nine Mile Road, once such an important route, is almost completely unpaved. In fact, it is considered the poorest of the four old military roads in Duchesne County. Difficult to travel as it is, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) designated it as a Scenic Backcountry Byway in 1990. But the road itself no longer limits travel in the canyon as it once did. The rapid proliferation of off-road vehicles has brought new access to the canyon's attractions—and new threats to their survival.
Read more about this topic: Nine Mile Canyon
Famous quotes containing the words current and/or issues:
“Liberty, as it is conceived by current opinion, has nothing inherent about it; it is a sort of gift or trust bestowed on the individual by the state pending good behavior.”
—Mary McCarthy (1912–1989)
“The hard truth is that what may be acceptable in elite culture may not be acceptable in mass culture, that tastes which pose only innocent ethical issues as the property of a minority become corrupting when they become more established. Taste is context, and the context has changed.”
—Susan Sontag (b. 1933)