Leisure time
Mount Everest: Climbers should use poop bags
Mountaineers climb in a long line on a path just below camp four. photo
© Rizza Alee/AP/dpa
The 8,849 meter high Mount Everest has gained notoriety for being the highest garbage dump in the world. Now mountaineers should take their remains back with them.
The new rule is intended to combat pollution in the landscape, he explained. In addition, there are always fears that mountaineers could indirectly ingest human excrement when they heat snow to obtain drinking water. To enforce the new rule, the municipality wants to open a temporary office at the base camp.
There are toilets in the base camp itself, said authority employee Khimlal Gautam, who has already climbed Everest himself. But higher up on the mountain, mountaineers have to relieve themselves outside – and the feces problem is now big.
In addition to the excrement, there are also tons of other rubbish on Everest – such as broken tents and clothing, food packaging, stoves, empty water bottles, beer cans and oxygen bottles. Authorities in the poor Himalayan country, home to several of the highest mountains in the world, have been trying to combat the problem for some time. Cleaning crews are repeatedly sent out and trash cans are set up on the hiking trails in the region. Some expedition companies have been using poop bags voluntarily for a long time.