MCC , The World Bank and Afghan ministries all want mining to start ASAP . Huffman says the ancient site will be destroyed by plans to mine the area . A Chinese company has permission to create a massive open-pit style copper mine . The mining operation would destroy an important archaeological site, according to local residents and environmental groups who say it is too close to sacred sites, including the Huashan Temple in central China where Buddhist monks once Mes Aynak is missing link showing Afghanistan 's historic role in Asia . He says destroying Mes Aynak is equivalent to wiping Machu Picchu off the map .
Huffman says the ancient site will be destroyed by plans to mine the area . A Chinese company has permission to create a massive open-pit style copper mine . The mining operation would destroy an important archaeological site, according to local residents and environmental groups who say it is too close to sacred sites, including the Huashan Temple in central China where Buddhist monks once Mes Aynak is missing link showing Afghanistan 's historic role in Asia . He says destroying Mes Aynak is equivalent to wiping Machu Picchu off the map .