The U.S. Bureau of Land Management and the Utah Historic Preservation Office announced Monday they hope to see ancient rock art, granaries and other Anasazi and Fremont antiquities added to the prestigious national register.

The effort counters preservationist groups' hopes to nominate large districts or even the entire canyon for listing because the BLM wants each of the hundreds of sites or artifacts nominated separately.

Diane Orr, a spokeswoman for the Utah Rock Art Research Association, said she was disappointed with the BLM plan for Nine Mile. "It was supposed to be nominated as the whole canyon," she said.

Pam Miller, an archaeologist and director of the Nine Mile Canyon Coalition, said during a conference call with state and federal officials that not nominating the canyon as a whole "is a loss."

Of particular concern to archaeologists is so-called empty space - areas included in a historic district where artifacts have yet to be discovered and cataloged - and the potential loss of history if those areas are excluded from a nomination.

The Hopi nation, which has filed objections to the drilling plan, considers the entire canyon a traditional cultural land.

But officials assured the groups on the conference call that the BLM plan would be flexible enough to nominate new finds as they are documented.

"If sites are discovered outside that big blobby thing that was the district, bada bing! That's what's so cool about this," said Lori Hunsaker, deputy state historic preservation officer and an archaeologist. "There's no reason why they can't be added."

The BLM hopes to have the nomination paperwork completed and submitted within four to six months. The agency is waiting to hear the opinion of the Carbon County Commission, notified of the plan late Friday.

Archaeologist Jerry Spangler of the Colorado Plateau Archaeological Alliance told the state and federal officials the Hopi opinion ought to be as important as the commission's.

The canyon, which stretches into Duchesne and Carbon counties in eastern Utah, holds the remains of Anasazi and other Indian granaries, villages, artifacts, petroglyphs and pictographs.

The BLM has cataloged 830 separate sites, but because two private landowners - including Bill Barrett Corp. of Denver - have objected to nominations, fewer will be forwarded for listing, said BLM spokesman Byron Loosle. He said he didn't know exactly how many would make the cut.

Bill Barrett wants to drill more than 800 natural-gas wells on the West Tavaputs Plateau. A final environmental impact statement is in the works.

One of the main concerns for preservationists and archaeologists is the damage big-rig traffic up the canyon road is causing for the rock-art panels. Bill Barrett has about 100 wells already operating on the plateau, with hundreds of truck trips per week kicking up dust and chemicals applied as dust suppressant.

That damage wasn't addressed in the national-register efforts. In fact, while listing is considered an honor, the only protection it affords is a federal review if someone wants to destroy the artifact or site.

phenetz@sltrib.com

National Register of Historic Places

The Web site of the National Register of Historic Places says the register ''is the official list of the nation's historic places worthy of preservation.'' The list is administered by the National Park Service. Learn more at www.nps.gov.