Nepal's spring climbing season begins, drones to be used in cleaning up Everest
Nepal has formed a team to clean up Everest using drones, Agenzia Nova reports.
The team was formed following a memorandum of understanding signed last summer by the Everest Pollution Control Committee (SPCC), the Khumbu Pasanglhamu municipality and Nepalese drone company Airlift Technology.
About 15 test flights have been conducted, collecting about 234 kilograms of waste from Base Camp to just below Camp I, Airlift Technology co-founder Milan Pandey told The Himalayan Times.
Another 641 kilograms of waste were collected in tests on Ama Dablam, up to Camp II.
The drones will also be used to assist the Sherpas, known as “icefall doctors,” who scale the giant Khumbu icefall by carrying ladders and ropes.
Eight drone pilots have been trained so far.
The spring climbing season is about to begin and, according to the Association of Expedition Operators (EOAN), it should be very busy on several “eight-thousanders”.
About 420 foreign climbers are expected to climb Everest and another 80 are heading for Lhotse. They will be assisted by about 500 Sherpas and other staff.
In addition, the EOAN expects over 50 climbers on Annapurna, 60 on Makalu, about 40 on Kanchenjunga and 20 on Dhaulagiri, who will be assisted by other staff.
The spring season usually begins towards the end of March and ends in early June. Generally the most favourable conditions, especially for Everest, are between April and May.
Earlier it was reported that Nepal set Everest climbing fee at $15,000. The new rates will take effect in September and apply to the popular spring climbing season in April-May along the standard South East Ridge route.
Read about Anar Burasheva, the first Kazakh woman, who conquered Mount Everest last May.
