How your donation will be used.
Once you have made a donation, to the First Summit clean up expedition you will be contributing greatly towards a huge concerted effort next spring to remove up to 5 tonnes of rubbish from the slopes of Everest. All this rubbish on Everest is damaging the Mountains ecological balance. For centuries, this ecosystem remained delicately balanced, resulting in the tremendous bio-diversity of the Himalayas. Only in recent years has the ecosystem been disturbed in various parts due to processes both man-made and natural.
Rubbish and waste left behind from climbing expeditions is resulting in a worsening ecological situation on the mountain. One which climbers need to be made aware of.The rubbish has accumulated over decades of mountaineering.
Between 1921 and 1960, there were just 15 expeditions to the 8,848 metre-high (29,500 feet-high) peak that straddles Nepal and Tibet. Now, around 20,000 people are believed to visit the region every year. Man's impact on the environment has been an issue on Mount Everest ever since adventurers began making serious efforts to reach the summit.
The once pristine snowscape of Everest has became strewn with human waste, and earned an unflattering reputation for being the "world's highest garbage site".
Sir Chris Bonington, who led the first ascent of Everest's South-West Face in 1975, says: "We must deal with this situation. The area is one of stunning natural beauty, which is in danger of being ruined by litter."
Sir Edmund Hillary has openly admitted leaving used equipment on the slopes of Everest during his pioneering climb in 1953, when conservation was not so high on the agenda.The issue has however become much more pressing. Hundreds of people make an attempt on the world's highest peak each year, leaving oxygen tanks, food packaging and tents in their wake - excess weight discarded on the descent.
Recent clear-up efforts have had a real effect, says Angchering Sherpa, president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association.
The Nepalese government now makes expeditions pay a deposit, which is only returnable if they bring their rubbish back down.
Clean-up climbs, and financial incentives for porters to fill empty bags with mountain litter have worked, he says.
"Things are improving, the area is getting cleaner, people are much more cautious about their garbage," he says.
Those who depend on the Himalayas for a living realise "if we keep the area clean, it means more business for tour operators, local people and porters".
The Nepalese authorities are now pushing climbers to use metal containers, which can be brought down in crushed form and then recycled, rather than plastic or glass.
The collected material is fuelling local industry in Kathmandu and Jiri, where it is turned into cooking pans and utensils and sold in nearby markets.
However the continuous pile-up of waste on the slopes of Mount Everest, left by climbers each season is an ongoing problem which environmentalists say threatens the conservation of the whole Himalayan region. Yet again, Everest is in need of a clean up.
The First Summit Everest clean up expedition 2007, will work towards removing as much rubbish as possible from the peak. With your help we will suceed.
Please make a donation of a minimum of $1 US to help get this clean up expedition off the ground.