Many people love the country's parks for their majestic beauty; over 325 million people visit each year, according to the National Park Service. And among national, state, and local parks, Americans are fortunate to have access to nature around the country.
But while the majority of visitors enjoy and respect these areas, some feel the need to leave a lasting mark — such as several vandals at Starved Rock State Park in Illinois.
"Sometimes words aren't enough to express our disappointment in people," park officials posted on their Facebook page. "Vandals recently spray painted blue and black graffiti on the face of Sandstone Point at Starved Rock State Park. Conservation police discovered the damage during the weekend."
While some types of paint can be cleaned, they wrote that it was "unlikely" staff would be able to remove this graffiti.
"This one hurts," they continued. "The rock at Sandstone Point has been there since glacial times, and it's been largely undisturbed — until now."
Instead of sharing photos of the graffiti, they opted to share other photos from within the park, showcasing its abundant waterfalls and colorful trees.
Unfortunately, thoughtless acts of vandalism are common in shared natural spaces, from spray-painting graffiti to carving words into thermal crust. And in certain instances, the cost or ecological risk of removing the damage is simply too high, leaving a lasting negative impact.
Starved Rock officials said that acts such as this one ruin the scenery, damage the environment, and disrespect the park's staff and volunteers, "who work hard every day to protect the natural wonders found at Starved Rock and other state parks."
Many parks are cracking down on both a federal and state level to try to discourage would-be vandals from harming places like Sandstone Point.
Visitors to Yellowstone have had to pay hefty fines and even serve jail time for stepping onto delicate thermal areas, the Cowboy State Daily reported. (Even celebrities such as actor Pierce Brosnan aren't immune to the consequences of their actions.)
In New York City parks, vandalism and destruction of trees, plants, flowers, grass, and shrubs can result in up to six months' imprisonment, $15,000 in fines, or both.
And while Starved Rock is likely stuck with this vandalism forever, the park is requesting that anyone who knows the culprit behind the vandalism call the conservation police, to whom they can give anonymous information.
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