ABSTRACT
The Tadrart Acacus and the Messak Settafet Mountains are located in the heart of the Sahara desert and are among the most important cultural heritage sites in Africa and the world. Rock art, archaeological sites and attractive – typically Saharan – environments make this area a magnificent destination for scientists, travellers and tourists (Figure 1). As a result of their remote location, close to the south-western border of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, and Libya’s political situation over the last three decades, these arid and rugged landscapes escaped most of the dramatic problems that have heavily affected neighbouring regions. In many of these regions, indiscriminate actions, be they politically related, as in the case of the disputed territory of the Western Sahara, 1 or related to development projects, as with the recent flooding of the Nabta Playa region in Egypt, 2 have impacted significantly on the cultural and environmental heritage.
