Recreational climbers of steep rock faces can disturb breeding birds and wildlife and cause excessive removal of the scanty soil and vegetation. The use by rock climbers of stainless steel bolts – to hold a fall – is defacing cliffs and mountains and encouraging more climbing in sensitive areas by making the sport safer.
In their search for pristine routes, rock climbers have laid separate lines of metal pegs just metres apart on the more popular faces of the Alps. A local landowner proposed to cover the cliffs at Land's End, UK, with a permanent network of stainless steel bolts in order to minimize further erosion caused by climbers.