The traditional owners of Uluru are today expected to make an announcement on whether or not they will close it to climbing permanently, as interest from visitors wanting to ascend the rock wanes.

The management plan for the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park says the board of management will work to close the rock permanently to climbers once the proportion of visitors doing so falls below 20 per cent.

How would a ban be enforced? Under Commonwealth laws, there are steep fines for people who ride or walk in a Commonwealth reserve and go off track

Under Commonwealth laws, there are steep fines for people who ride or walk in a Commonwealth reserve and go off track The management board could have all walking tracks on the rock removed, making any climb illegal

The management board could have all walking tracks on the rock removed, making any climb illegal In practical terms, a chain currently in place could be removed, which would make climbing Uluru physically difficult

In practical terms, a chain currently in place could be removed, which would make climbing Uluru physically difficult Under NT legislation, sacred sites including Uluru have special protections, and a serious breach of the Sacred Sites Act can lead to penalties of more than $60,000 and two years' jail

A meeting was called for this morning, and chairman of the management board Sammy Wilson was expected to speak to media afterward.

If a decision to ban climbers is made, it is expected that it would not take effect for 18 months, so tourists who have planned trips expecting to make the climb can do so.

In 2010, when the board announced its intention to close the climb, the proportion of visitors to the site who chose to make the ascent was 38 per cent, and in the 1990s it was 74 per cent.

Traditional owners have in the past asked people not to climb Uluru, previously known as Ayers Rock, and a message at the bottom of the sacred site reiterates the message.

In 2015 a protester, who did not seek permission from traditional owners, cut the chain that helps climbers negotiate their way up Uluru, saying he felt a connection to the sacred site and wanted to set off a debate on whether people should walk up it.

Although that act was praised by some senior Aboriginal people in Central Australia, a decision was made to repair the chain.

Data collated in 2015 showed that on the days the park was open, only 16.2 per cent of visitors climbed Uluru.

However, national park management also revealed the climb was closed 77.3 per cent of the time due to dangerous weather or cultural reasons.