Party is over but degradation of Everest persists

For the poor country of Nepal, the last several months have been a time to bask in the glare of Mount Everest coverage. For those involved in ecology, high altitude mountain climbing and Nepal's tourism industry, however, it has been time to take stock of what the booming tourist trade is doing to Nepal's fragile environment. The party may be over, but the serious environmental problems and challenges persist.

As an environmental journalist I have been intrigued by reports of Mount Everest's environmental degradation, so last May 23 I trekked the winding and steep road from Lukla to Namche Bazaar to attend a historic three-day conference on ecotourism that focused principally on Nepal. More than 55 academics, conservationists, tourism industry officials from 15 countries, as well as members of the local community, attended.

Nepal's mountains are an attraction not just for climbers but also ecologists, anthropologists, development workers and many others who are attracted by the exciting research opportunities.

One of those researchers is Dinesh R. Bhuju, an ecologist with the Royal Nepal Academy of Sciences and Technology in Kathmandu. Bhuju explained to me his fascinating work at the Pyramid International Laboratory-Observatory, a three-story high permanent structure of glass and aluminum located in the Sagamartha National Park, which at an altitude of 5050 meters, is the world's highest scientific laboratory.

The Pyramid's geometric form offers the advantage of high stability with a natural resistance to research harsh atmospheric conditions like wind, snow and rain. The laboratory uses only renewable power sources -- water, sun and wind.

The researchers at the Pyramid are particularly interested in studying how humans can adapt and survive at high altitudes. " Medical science tells us that people can't live at the 7000 to 8000 meter level, but Sherpas (Nepali mountain guides) do it without the use of oxygen," Bhuju told me. "The challenge to modern science is to find out why."

Many other conference sessions were focused on a more basic concern -- how can pollution and commercialisation that is rapidly destroying the attraction of Everest be checked. Tourism is vital to Nepal for earning foreign exchange. No country is more blessed with as many majestic mountains, and this rugged terrain holds a huge attraction for the adventurous from all over the world.

With the crowds swarming into the Everest region, the deforestation has continued at a steady pace. In 2001, the number of mountaineers made 28 percent of Nepal's total tourist population, a significant increase from the 15 percent in 1988.

As the total number of tourists continues to decline, Nepal is becoming increasingly dependent on the adventurous trekkers and mountaineers. That's understandable, given the economic impact. In 2002 Nepal opened up six districts for trekking and gave out more than 125 permits for climbing. In 2002 alone, the country made 128 million Rupees as royalty from the issuing of permits for more than 900 expeditions.

The current cost of climbing Mount Everest for a seven-member team is U.S $70,000, and for a single individual, $25,000. It's almost reached the point where a person with the money and time can hire a team of Sherpas who will gladly push them to the top.

Speaking at a press conference organised by the British Embassy last May 28, Sir Edmund Hillary said that the Mount Everest climb had lost some of its adventure and challenge and that it was time for the Nepal government to put restrictions on expeditions to the world's highest peak. But for others it's not the loss of the sense of adventure that concerns them. It's the rapidly deteriorating environment that threatens the eco-system in the Everest region. Ken Noguchi, the youngest mountaineer to climb the tallest peaks on all seven continents said it was time for Nepal to make an effort to clean up Everest.

Naguchi himself led four clean up expeditions of Mount Everest. Remarkably, during the last four years, Noguchi and his climbing team have brought down 37 tons of garbage from Mount Everest, including 430 empty oxygen cylinders and four dead bodies. Noguchi wants Nepal's authorities to stiffen the regulations and to get liaison officers to properly monitor the expedition teams. "Failure to do that would demean all our efforts," he says.

But if only the solution to problem was that simple, The trail leading to the Everest summit is still littered with more than 200 tons of garbage. Moreover, the increased regulations and restrictions could have a devastating impact on the poor rural people of Nepal's Himalayas. In the past half century, Nepal's tourist trade has made the Sherpa population in the Himalayas much better off economically. The U.S. National Geographic Society estimates that the Sherpas working in tourism now have an average income of $7,000, about six times Nepal's average. Sherpas run more than 300 lodges and hotels serving climbers and other tourists in the Everest region.

In an article in Kathmandu Post last month (May), journalist Saytandra Timilsin pointed out that each mountain climber who wants to scale a peak more than 6,500 meters requires the services of four lower altitude porters, as well as additional porters for carrying equipment and supplies in high altitudes. By Timilsin's calculations, this means more than 4,500 people were engaged as porters in expedition during 2002. This number does not include the climbing Sherpas who are hired for a minimum of one month with each expedition.

In addition, trekking agencies, hotels, teahouses, pubs, provision suppliers and other businesses all profit from the numerous expeditions that head to the Everest region.

Those at the Namche Bazaar conference, of course, are aware of the dilemma -- economic benefit versus environmental degradation. "For years, the Nepal tourist industry has been comfortable in its hypothesis that increasing local incomes through tourism would lead to a greater conservation success," explained Dr. Alton C Byers, Senior Conservationist at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Research (ICIMOD) in Kathmandu.

Byers' research shows that 50 percent of the juniper shrub, which takes 100 years to reach a diameter of four centimeters, has been removed from the hill tops in the Everest region during the past ten years to heat the trekkers' meals and drinks.

But it was obvious form the discussions and debates at the conference that the consensus of delegates agreed everybody involved in the climbing experience bears some of the responsibility for the acute environmental crisis in the Everest region.

One of the major resolutions passed at the conference called for planning within the Everest region that aims for an integrated approach to the management of land, water and living resources so that conservation and equitable sustainable use be promoted.

And with the integrated approach should come more education.

Again Dr. Byers: "I don't think the average tourist and trekking and climbing firm is really aware of the impacts they are having since it often takes a trained eye to see them. When the average trekker is interviewed, he or she expresses a strong desire to contribute to the well being of the local people and the environment. But they don't know the issues."

Byers' solution is practical: "Let's foster increased awareness first, then build in mechanism where the tourist industry is actively and financially contributing to sound local management in perpetuity of the mountain landscapes."

Ron Chepesiuk is a Fulbright Scholar and Visiting Professor of Journalism at Chittagong University.