Nepal is set to clear tons of waste from Mount Everest, ahead of the opening of the 2024 Himalayan mountaineering window. The mammoth garbage collection operation follows previous efforts as part of the Mountain Cleanup Campaign, which has brought 110 tons of trash down the 8,849-meter Himalayan peak over the four years since the scheme’s launch in 2019.
Conducted by the Nepali army in partnership with Unilever, the Cleanup programme is once again set to get underway on 14 April, with a team of 12 military personnel and 18 Sherpas, plus other support staff. In addition to an estimated haul of 10 tons of garbage, the team said in a statement they would undertake the sad task of recovering the remains of five climbers who lost their lives last year trying to conquer the world’s highest mountain and have not yet been accounted for. In total, 12 climbers died in 2023.
The Nepal route versus Tibet-China
The Nepal route to the top of the world is the most popular at the present time, due in part to tight Chinese visa restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic which limited access to the northern China-Tibet route. Despite being thought of by many as the safer route, China also lost the faith of many would-be climbers when it closed the route to allow the Olympic flame to visit, giving only eight days’ warning to teams about to set out on the challenge of a lifetime. It is expected to open the route to outsiders again this year.
But the recent popularity of the Nepal route has taken its toll. While Chinese authorities set about during the closure to foreigners improving the northern route and removing six tons of waste, climbers on the Nepal side complained of dangerous overcrowding in places, having to pass dead bodies, and some areas resembling a toilet.
Poop bags and tracking devices
Nepali authorities have, however, also been taking action with the plight of the mountain prompting the introduction of new rules for the 2024 season. For the first time, climbers, who produce on average 250 grams of excrement per day, will be required to take designated poop bags up the mountain, as well as bring them back down full after their two-week expedition to prove they have not left their waste in nature. They will also need to rent and wear obligatory tracking devices to increase the chances of a successful outcome in the event of a search and rescue mission.
