Posts Tagged ‘mount everest’
Cleaning the Everest
Dairy Milk chocolate wrappers and empty Bikaner Bhujiya packets: Those were some of the items I carried down from the Everest Base Camp. But mind it, it wasn’t my litter but of those who probably climbed to conquer the world’s highest summit but and dumped their garbage.
But there have been organizations like the Extreme Everest Expedition in Kathmandu and the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee based in Namche Bazaar that are committed to clean the mess that others, who pay thousands of dollars to climb the Everest, have created. And joining hands to clean the garbage from the Everest region are people from all walks of professions, including us.
At the base camp, the sight of tons of waste recovered from above 8,000 meters, was not pretty. Empty oxygen cylinders, burners and plastic: Yikes, I thought to myself. But at the same time I thought it would be a good initiative to carry some of the garbage with me. And I encouraged some of my friends to do something good, be a part of a cause.
But it wasn’t only us—a team of five journalists (only three carried the garbage) who were there to cover the Tenzing Hillary Everest Marathon 2010—ready to carry a small packet of garbage and ferry it to Namche. Some of the participants of the marathon were also involved in the cause and they sounded excited to be a part of the marathon and cleaning up the Everest campaign.
And I was excited too.
So I asked for a garbage picket that was tucked in a zip-lock bag. And when I received a weightless (literally) packet with some condiment wrappers, I asked to one of the representatives of the campaign: “Is this it?”
“Oh if this isn’t enough, you can have this one,” he said passing a bigger packet. But since I already had a heavier backpack, I opted for the smaller one and put it inside my backpack. It actually made no difference weigh wise and I was happy to be a part of a good cause.
And maybe I was too happy, or tired, or that the weight of the garbage made no difference, that I completely forgot to submit the garbage packet in Namche. And so I carried it to Lukla. But since we reached Lukla late in the evening and had to board an early morning flight, it was difficult to drop the garbage at the designated place. But we had to do what we were supposed to do. And we handed over the garbage along with our names (me and my friend’s) to a security personnel of the place we needed to contact. Anyways, mission accomplished. I’d say over accomplished since we had the garbage with us for extra two days.
Though I felt like we did something on our part, it becomes necessary for everyone to think on their part and act accordingly. When I talked to one of the German participants, she said it would be better that people who climb Everest not litter so people like us do not have to worry about cleaning. As I talked to one of the hotel owners, she said it’s high time for people to clean the capital than the Everest and learn something from the locals of Solukhumbu. And she seemed right. In Thukla, I came across members of Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee who were returning after their mission of cleaning the area, which they do on frequent intervals during and after the trekking season ends.
And I asked to myself: How often do we do this in Kathmandu?
The cleaning campaign in the Everest is certainly an eye-opener of what is happening in the region. The empty Snickers and Mars wrappers scattered along the trekking trails are still found in abundant. As trekkers, people should be aware of the ecological and environmental consequences that they’re leaving behind. Beyond the trekking trails, mountaineers should realize about the potential hazards they’re creating by dumping their trash and at a national level, we should be aware of this and learn.
On the D 
