Nepal is preparing to move its Everest base camp

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I just read this chilling BBC report of how Nepal is preparing to move its Everest base camp because global warming and human activity are making it unsafe.




The base camp is located on the Khumbu glacier, which is rapidly thinning. The exposed ice is melting, causing rocky debris to fall, and destabilizing the glacier. 

"We surprisingly see crevasses appearing overnight at places where we sleep," said Col Kishor Adhikari of the Nepali army, who was staying at base camp while leading a clean-up campaign

"In the morning, many of us have this chilling experience that we could have fallen into them in the night. Cracks on the ground develop so often, it is quite risky." 



This frightening change has been attributed to global warming.  A leading member of the committee that recommended the base camp move, Khimlal Gautam, said the presence of so many people at base camp was contributing to the problem.

"For instance, we found that people urinate around 4,000 litres at the base camp every day," he said.

"And the massive amount of fuels like kerosene and gas we burn there for cooking and warming will definitely have impacts on the glacier's ice."

Up to 1,500 people use the base camp in the spring climbing season. Its ironic how our deep fascination with the beauty of Mount Everest is ultimately causing its destruction.



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