Kathmandu, Nepal — The highest camp on the highest mountain in the world is Full of garbage that will take years to clean up.according to a Sherpa who led a team that worked to clear trash and unearth bodies frozen for years near the summit of Mount Everest.
He Nepal A government-funded team of soldiers and Sherpas removed 11 tons (24,000 pounds) of trash, four bodies and a skeleton from Everest during this year’s climbing season.
Ang Babu Sherpa, who led the Sherpa team, said there could be 40 to 50 tons (88,000-110,000 pounds) of trash still in South Col, the last camp before climbers attempt to reach the summit.
“The garbage left there was mainly old tents, some food containers and gas cartridges, oxygen bottles, tent packages and ropes used to climb and tie the tents,” he said, adding that the garbage It is layered and frozen at 8,000 square meters. meters (26,400 feet) of altitude where the Collado Sur camp is located.
from the The peak was conquered for the first time in 1953.Thousands of climbers have scaled it and many have left more than just their footprints.
In recent years, a government requirement that climbers bring their trash or lose their deposits, along with increased awareness among climbers about the environment, have significantly reduced the amount of trash left behind. However, that was not the case in previous decades.
“Most of the trash comes from previous expeditions,” Ang Babu said.
The team’s Sherpas collected trash and bodies at higher altitudes, while soldiers worked at lower levels and in the base camp area for weeks during the popular spring climbing season, when weather conditions are most favorable. .
Ang Babu said the weather was a big challenge for his work in the South Col area, where oxygen levels are about a third of normal, winds can quickly turn into blizzard conditions and temperatures drop.
“We had to wait for good weather, when the sun would melt the ice sheet. But waiting a long time with that attitude and conditions is simply not possible,” she stated. “It is difficult to stay for a long time with the oxygen level very low.”
Taking out the trash is also a big task as it is frozen inside the ice and breaking the blocks is not easy.
It took two days to unearth a body near the South Col that was frozen deep in the ice, he said. Halfway through, the team had to retreat to lower camps due to deteriorating weather and then resume the task when it improved.
Another body was much higher, at 8,400 meters (27,720 feet), and it took 18 hours to drag it to Camp 2, where a helicopter picked it up.
The bodies were flown to Tribhuvan Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu for identification.
Of the 11 tons of garbage removed, three tons of decomposable items were taken to villages near the base of Everest and the remaining eight were transported by porters and yaks and then taken by truck to Kathmandu. There it was sorted for recycling at a facility operated by Agni Ventures, an agency that manages recyclable waste.
“The oldest waste we received dates back to 1957 and was rechargeable batteries for flashlights,” said the agency’s Sushil Khadga.
Why do climbers leave trash?
“At that high altitude, Life is very difficult and oxygen is very low.. That’s why climbers and their helpers are more focused on saving themselves,” Khadga said.
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