The graffiti, trash and bullet holes at Gold Butte have a way of spoiling a getaway to one of the most beautiful, serene spots in the Mojave Desert. Illegal cattle grazing there threatens native wildlife, including bighorn sheep, desert tortoises, coyotes, foxes and endangered birds and plants.

While many visitors just come away disheartened, for Fawn Douglas, the tally of damage is a call to action.

Douglas is a member of the Las Vegas Paiute Tribe, whose heritage is inextricably linked to the area its members know as Mah’ha ga doo, or “land of many bushes.”

Douglas’ great-great-grandfather was born within the present-day boundaries of Gold Butte, a 1 1/2-hour car drive northeast of Las Vegas, along the Arizona border south of Mesquite. Stories about the area have been passed down from generation to generation.

Today, Douglas often slips away to Gold Butte to escape the noise and pressure of city life in Las Vegas and to connect with nature. She also has devoted considerable time and effort to raising awareness about what is at stake if we do not protect this land. She often takes students to the site and organizes cultural activities there. On each trip, she picks up trash along the roads and trails.

She hopes that in the near future, this incredible landscape will be free of garbage, graffiti, tire tracks and cattle.

For years, I have shared Fawn Douglas’ vision of Gold Butte and tried to make it a reality. Accordingly, I have worked with federal agencies, local tribes, conservationists and outdoor enthusiasts to protect the area from further damage.

Many people do not realize Gold Butte is an extension of the Grand Canyon’s greater ecosystem. If the injustices at Gold Butte were to occur at the national park, there would be public outrage.

As a community, we must treat our piece of the Grand Canyon just as they do in Arizona.

We have a lot to gain from protecting Gold Butte’s 350,000 acres. The 170 million-year-old fossil tracts, 12,000-year-old petroglyphs, striking geology and wildlife are all artifacts that Americans can respectfully embrace and enjoy for generations to come.

Protecting the area would also provide economic benefits for Nevada.

Some studies suggest that new protections would provide an additional $2.7 million to $3 million to our state while improving the quality of life in nearby communities along the Nevada-Arizona border.

Douglas and groups like Friends of Gold Butte are leading the charge to educate the public on this issue, repair damage at the site and lobby government officials to ensure something happens soon. Now is the time for all of us to join forces so the Bureau of Land Management, which administers the site as an Area of Critical Environmental Concern, has the tools it needs to safeguard this precious piece of the planet.

Toward that end, I am urging you to join me in calling on Congress to pass my bill to establish Gold Butte as a National Conservation Area. Barring that, let us implore President Barack Obama to use his authority under the Antiquities Act to set aside this land as a national monument.

Until that happens, Gold Butte’s visitors will continue to see trash on the roadways, all-terrain vehicles destroying archaeological and historic sites, graffiti defacing ancient rock formations, and cattle illegally running rampant over environmentally sensitive areas.

I do not believe that is how we want to leave this natural treasure of Nevada for our children and our children’s children.

U.S. Rep. Dina Titus (D-Las Vegas) is serving her third term on Capitol Hill.