![]() Piles of rock can devastate the natural landscape, lead to erosion and extinction of endangered species, and is illegal in many areas. The art form of stacking rocks has benefits, but its popularity may do more harm than good.Balance and stack rocks, or stones, of different shapes and sizes, with this meditative art form that doubles as a gravity-defying STEAM activity! But please be aware. In some places, the constructions have moved beyond interesting curiosities and are now problematic. I don’t know the origin of the saying “Leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but photos”, but it might be applicable in the case of rock stacks. It also says that once the stack has been created and photos taken, the rocks should be returned to the spots where they were gathered and placed on the ground in their original orientation. The third site referenced below lists some helpful tips for people who want to build a stack but would like to cause as little disruption to the area as possible For example, it says that rocks should be collected from places where they are “loose from soils, sands, and silts” in order to minimize erosion. There’s nothing wrong with that, except when it’s potentially damaging for the environment or interferes with the activity of other people. Today’s rock stacks are created mainly for enjoyment. They were sometimes used as a place to bury the dead when the ground was too hard to dig a grave. Historically, they were created for spiritual rituals and ceremonies as well as memorials. Cairns are often found in areas that hold potential navigation dangers, such as on mountains and in deserts. In some cases, they still serve these functions. They originally had a practical purpose and were used as trail markers and memorials. Rocks beside a river (Photo by Felix Mittermeier, CC0 public domain license)Ī rock stack is not always the same as a cairn, though cairns are stacks of rocks. I think we may also be damaging cultural integrity if we build a new stack beside or near a historical cairn. By grabbing any rock that appeals to us to use in our construction, we may be “damaging the cultural integrity of a place”. In some places, the arrangement of rocks on the ground may have significance for a particular culture. On beaches with many stacks and only narrow pathways between them, this risk is increased.Ī scientist at the Nature Conservancy has pointed out another potential problem with creating rock stacks. In addition to other concerns, they are worried that a stack could collapse on top of a child. The Hawaii Division of State Parks dismantles stacks of stones that they find (but not, of course, cairns with cultural or historical significance that they encounter). Some people consider the creations to be like graffiti carved into a tree. In one case, so many stacks were present that it looked like it would be hard to walk over the beach. I’ve seen some photos of small beaches with multiple rock stacks. Opponents say the landscape is being ruined by stacks. Proponents of rock stacking (or stone balancing) say that the process is meditative and very helpful for some people, including children who have problems focusing on a task. (Quote from James Craig Page, stone-stacking artist, via the BBC) ![]() We’ve done workshops with schools and have found that children who have trouble focusing in the classroom absolutely take to the stone balancing. Often, a single stack in an area soon becomes accompanied by others as visitors see the original construction and decide to make their own. Photos of stone constructions are popular on social media. This might be true, but according to various reports rock stacking is becoming a popular activity in multiple countries. Some people may think that a single rock stack that they create on a beach is unlikely to cause major problems. Many species lay eggs in crevices between rocks, and moving them can result in altered flows, which could wash away the eggs or expose the fry to predators. ![]() ![]() On land, stacking rocks may cause soil erosion in the places where the stones were once positioned. Even removing a rock and later replacing it may cause an animal to abandon its burrow. The physical act of dragging a stone out of its position and along the ground may destroy animal burrows. The rocks might provide a safe area for an animal to emerge from its burrow to feed. Some organisms may depend on the rocks for shelter from the environment, protection from predators, or a place to reproduce. The activity may have some harmful consequences, however. Rocks are inanimate objects and aren’t living organisms, so there seems to be no problem in moving them. Many people may not give a second thought to moving rocks from one place to another. Rock stacks at English Bay in Vancouver (Photo by Linda Crampton)
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