How big is the problem of littering on Chomolongma?
How big is the problem of littering on Chomolongma? It depends on one's viewpoint. To a mountaineer, litter on Chomolongma is a big problem because no climber likes to reach the Fourth Pole only to stumble over discarded junk that originated in Europe and Japan. But then, who is to blame but the mountaineers?
To local residents, the question of litter on the High Himal is not a big issue because they have no business to go up there unless paid to do so by a foreign expedition. It is an out-of-sight, out-of-mind matter for most. For the decision-maker in Kathmandu, littering is an evil if it threatens the tourism industry. Otherwise, it is not a big deal compared to escalating pollution within Kathmandu itself. For unscrupulous climbers, mountain clean-ups provide an excuse for fund-raising at a time when sponsorships for climbing expeditions seem to be drying up. And then there arc the well-meaning, who devote their own time and money to fly half way around the world to pick up someone else's trash. The only problem is that so much money is spent on a token gesture.
Cleanup Crews