For many, climbing Mount Everest is the adventure of a lifetime. Each year, adventurers shell out tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars for the privilege of attempting the world’s highest peak. But climbing the mountain is risky, and 2023 was the deadliest season on record. So why is climbing Mount Everest so expensive? And given the risks involved, should it cost more than it does?
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00:00As treacherous as this crossing is, for many, climbing Mount Everest is the adventure of
00:12a lifetime.
00:14Some climbers shell out as much as $100,000 for a chance to reach the summit.
00:21A major part of the expense is paying the experienced guides who make their living on
00:26the mountain, but it's dangerous work.
00:31340 people have lost their lives on Everest in the last century, a third of them were
00:37guides.
00:38It's been a long time since I've seen such a beautiful view of the mountains, and I don't
00:45know why I'm here.
00:46I've lost a lot of my friends, and it's sad, but I have to come back.
00:55But the high death toll hasn't deterred thrill-seekers, and the rapidly expanding tourist industry
01:01is straining the ecosystem and the local economy.
01:12So why is climbing Mount Everest so expensive?
01:16And given the risks involved, is it expensive enough?
01:22Considering the danger, it's no surprise that mountain guides are one of the biggest
01:26expenses in summiting Everest.
01:33Phodwa Wangchu has touched Everest's peak 14 times already.
02:03He begins every climb with a puja ceremony, praying for safe passage and paying respect
02:32to the mountain.
02:34Even with his success rate, he never underestimates the deadly risks.
02:57Over the next several weeks, this group of 16 will climb for hours on end in total darkness,
03:04face the threat of avalanches and storms, and cross deadly passageways.
03:09Phodwa Wangchu and his team of experienced guides are their best chance of making it
03:15to the summit and surviving.
03:16It gives you a lot of confidence.
03:20You know, when your Sherpa has 15, 16 summits like some of these Sherpas here, when you're
03:25at high altitude and you're in those situations and they tell you, you know, it's okay, it's
03:29going to be okay, it's very reassuring that they've summited so many times.
03:35It's more than just mentally reassuring.
03:38On the mountain, the choices guides make directly affect whether a climber lives.
03:49The next morning, another group of climbers is gearing up for its expedition.
03:58It takes a bit of time, not to put it, but it saves your foot on the minus 30 or 50 sometimes.
04:08Near base camp at 5,364 meters, climbing guides lead a vital training course.
04:17Without this refresher, climbers won't know how to work with their specific expedition team.
04:24The guides are using the limited time they have today to review how best to handle steep
04:29inclines and to teach this team how to problem solve on the spot.
04:47The course is one of the services included in a mountain guide's cost.
05:00Guides only work with experienced high altitude mountaineers, a requirement of the Nepalese
05:05government.
05:06But that doesn't mean the climbers are ready to brave Everest's extreme climate yet.
05:14I think if you are talking about high altitude mountaineering, it's important to do this
05:20at least every six months.
05:23It keeps your body ready for a lack of oxygen.
05:30I came here by helicopter, which was not the best idea.
05:34The first days were quite hard.
05:38It'll be Ismail's second attempt at summiting Everest.
05:42He confronted the danger that awaits his new team over a decade ago.
05:47We almost reached 8,500, but because of the very unfavorable weather conditions, I had
05:54to return.
05:55So the summit was very close.
05:57So after 11 years, I am back.
06:02Ismail averted catastrophe in his first summit attempt, but not everyone is so lucky.
06:09When climbers are critically injured, guides have to be prepared to switch an expedition
06:14to a rescue and provide emergency relief.
06:19In May 2023, a team of Sherpa guides rescued a climber from Everest's death zone.
06:27Over the course of six hours, the guides carried him on their backs down to Camp 3.
06:37Since the 2019 season, as a safety measure, Nepal has required every climber to be accompanied
06:43by at least one climbing guide.
06:46And choosing a local guide has its distinct benefits on Everest.
06:51Many of these mountain guides are Sherpas, an ethnic group native to the slopes of Mount
06:55Everest.
06:56The conquering team was composed of 20 Americans, aided by Sherpa tribesmen who acted as carriers.
07:04Though the term Sherpa is informally used as a catch-all for Everest guides, the Sherpa
07:09people have been closely involved in mountaineering here since the very first Everest expeditions.
07:16Their tissues use oxygen more efficiently and preserve muscle energy better than people
07:21from lowlands.
07:24That's one of the reasons Sherpa guides can assist their climbers with heavy loads without
07:28risking as much physical strain.
07:31I've got a very good Sherpa, you know, and he carries a lot.
07:37So about 10 kg I would carry, but they would carry three times that.
07:47And it's indispensable, especially here at the Khumbu Icefall, where three Sherpas lost
07:53their lives in 2023.
08:02At an elevation of 5,486 metres, the team slowly makes its way through shifting glaciers.
08:18The group is also relying on the work that locals known as icefall doctors did months
08:45earlier.
08:47These specialised climbers establish the safest route to the top of Everest every season.
08:54A separate fee of $600 per expedition member goes to these icefall doctors to use the ladders
09:00and ropes they set up.
09:09But even with a clear path, climbers are still in danger of crevasses opening and closing
09:16and even unexpected avalanches.
09:18For
09:43each of these climbs, guides certified by the International Federation of Mountain Guides
09:48Associations can charge agencies $10,000.
09:53Less experienced climbing guides make only $4,000 per climb.
09:59The agency Furwa Wangchu works with, Makalu Adventure, says it pays guides an additional
10:04$1,500 for every successful summit.
10:09It charges about $30,000 to climb Everest, but some foreign agencies charge over double
10:16that amount.
10:27Guy Cotter is the CEO of Adventure Consultants.
10:31Guy acted as a mountain guide on the New Zealand company's pioneering commercial expedition
10:36up Everest in 1992.
10:39He took over the business after his friend Rob Hall died on the mountain in 1996.
10:47Included in the cost of coming on one of our expeditions to Everest is that we have internationally
10:53qualified mountain guides, guides who have a huge amount of experience as mountain guides
10:59and in the Himalayas.
11:00We also have a high flow oxygen rate of four litres a minute, the maximum we can get out
11:06of the regulators that we're using.
11:08We include a doctor on the expedition, base camp cooks for the Sherpas.
11:13We have base camp cooks for the climbing team.
11:17We have cooks at camp two that are based there for the season as well.
11:22We also provide a base camp manager.
11:26Every expedition member gets their own base camp tent, a walk-in tent with a cot bed,
11:32really nice and comfortable.
11:34We believe in a good level of support, really good food.
11:41No matter the price point, all expeditions must dedicate a chunk of their budget to hiring
11:46porters like Santosh Tamang.
11:54Porters carry supplies up and down the mountain on foot, the only choice in this remote and
11:59rugged terrain.
12:03Though most porters rely solely on their own strength, some, like Santosh, invest in yaks
12:09and donkeys to carry more loads and make more money.
12:14Today, he's bringing kerosene and petrol to base camp.
12:37He says he's been able to charge a higher rate after the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing
13:00from about $12 to a little over $15 per day.
13:05For larger loads, he can make almost $380 a trip.
13:10But Santosh says he doesn't see much of his earnings.
13:30Santosh made a significant investment in yaks.
13:34They can cost over $450 each, and he has five.
13:39That's almost $2,300 worth of cattle.
13:42And his expenses don't end there.
13:45Half of his earnings go to feeding his yaks grass and potatoes.
13:51Each feeding costs him $70.
13:54With the money he pockets, Santosh can only just get by.
14:04Climbers also have to pay for independent tracking guides, like Prabin Gulung.
14:10Prabin leads climbers from the airport in Lukla to Everest base camp.
14:27Even at lower elevations, conditions on Everest aren't easy.
14:49Prabin must help trekkers reach base camp safely, even as they suffer effects from the
14:54challenging weather, terrain, altitude, or their own physical limitations.
15:24For these services, Prabin gets paid up to $15 a day, adding up to almost $210 for a
15:48two-week round trip.
15:50If he's lucky, he gets tips and is able to book multiple treks in one season.
15:56But Prabin says his own income isn't guaranteed.
16:01Being an independent guide means he can only work when he's contacted directly by agencies
16:06or climbers.
16:07He makes the most money when trekkers hire him directly, as they won't have to pay any
16:12logistical fees associated with travel agencies.
16:16Prabin isn't booked consistently, which strains him financially and deters him from
16:21committing to becoming a climbing guide.
16:42Ever since the British Colonial Survey of India identified Everest as the world's
16:47highest peak in 1852, it's held a place of fascination in the global imagination.
16:54Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary's historic first ascent in 1953 catapulted its fame to
17:00new heights.
17:02For decades afterward, attempts at Everest's summit were limited to scientific surveys
17:08and experienced mountaineers.
17:11Even in the 1970s and 80s, only about 10 expeditions a year tackled Everest from the Nepalese side.
17:19But in the 1990s, the mountain rapidly commodified.
17:23In 1992, adventure consultants led the first commercial expedition up the mountain.
17:30In 1996, the company's co-founder, Rob Hall, led a doomed commercial expedition up Everest
17:36in which he and seven other people died.
17:40An incident immortalized in John Krakauer's 1997 book, Into Thin Air, and a 2015 Hollywood
17:47film.
17:49Rather than dissuading foreign visitors, this incident and others like it only added to
17:54the mountain's mythos.
17:57By the early 2000s, the number of climbers had jumped from dozens a year to hundreds.
18:03In 2023, a record 478 permits were issued.
18:11Everest's explosion in popularity has brought more money than ever into the local economy.
18:17But some of those who work on the mountain say it's not nearly enough to offset the risks
18:21involved.
18:24The majority of summits occur in the spring season, so most guides are hired for only
18:28one expedition, limiting their yearly income.
18:34Gurbar Wangchur says guides don't see enough money to justify continuously risking their lives.
18:41We don't have enough money to cover the cost of climbing the mountain.
18:45We have to pay for the expenses of our house, our family, our children's education.
18:52We have to pay for the expenses of our house, our family, our children's education.
19:02Guides also have to pay for their own gear, an investment of as much as $7,000.
19:09That includes clothing, boots and backpacks that must withstand extreme conditions on
19:15the mountain.
19:17The downsuit alone can cost $2,000, and some gear needs to be replaced every few years.
19:25Oftentimes, working as a guide in the increasingly commercialized Everest industry comes out
19:30of necessity.
19:32We started mountaineering because we were born in a remote area and didn't go to school.
19:42We didn't have a complete education, so we started mountaineering to make a living.
20:02To stay afloat, Gurbar Wangchur takes on other work.
20:13This is common for many local guides who struggle to make ends meet from a job that routinely
20:18puts their life in danger.
20:31That's one of the reasons Dawa Geljin Sherpa quit his career as a climbing guide.
21:01Like Dawa Geljin, Gurbar Wangchur openly questions whether the risks are really worth it.
21:07And he thinks it's a question more Sherpa guides will ask.
21:17If Gurbar Wangchur is right, a declining number of expert mountain guides will coincide with
21:23the growing Everest tourism industry.
21:27But as the industry grows, so too does the frequency of fatalities.
21:32Spring 2023 saw 18 deaths, 15 confirmed and 3 presumed, making it the deadliest season
21:40for climbers on Everest.
21:43Six of those lost were Sherpa guides.
21:47At the same time, Nepal is seeing a growing job market, with locals increasingly choosing
21:52other professions.
21:56I've experienced it.
21:58Before, if we didn't complete our education, we wouldn't be able to get a job.
22:04If we didn't get a job, we wouldn't be able to get a job.
22:08I never thought I would lose my life and my family on Everest.
22:15I don't think Sherpa guides will exist on Everest in the next 15-20 years.
22:21I think Sherpa guides will exist in the next 15-20 years.
22:25I think Sherpa guides will exist in the next 15-20 years.
22:32I think Sherpa guides will exist in the next 15-20 years.
22:39For those who pay to climb the mountain each year, the high price is fair.
22:45I think it's okay for what it is.
22:48It's okay, and the Nepalese government have to make money from it.
22:53The Sherpas have to make money.
22:55It would be an insult, I think, if we would just come and pay hardly anything
23:00and summit the mountain.
23:06But despite the challenges Everest's workers like Furbo Wangchu face to make ends meet,
23:11the scale of the climbing and trekking industry means the economic fate of the region
23:15is inseparable from tourism.
23:19Mingma Noorbu Sherpa is the CEO of the Himalayan Trust,
23:24an NGO in Kathmandu focused on development in the Solukambu region
23:29where Mount Everest is located.
23:32He says ensuring that the money generated by tourists stays in the local economy
23:37is key to the region's survival.
23:40In the old days, most of the money remains in Kathmandu with the travel and tour operators,
23:45and then little money goes to the community level where the poor people are living.
23:51People at the grassroots level, at the community level,
23:54they need that trekking, mountaineering and tourism.
24:02The Nepalese government also recognises the need
24:05to keep the money Everest generates from leaving Nepal.
24:09In 2025, it plans to increase the price of climbing permits for foreigners to $15,000,
24:16up from $11,000.
24:19The government says the salaries of high-altitude guides will also increase.
24:24But Mingma Noorbu says the climbing industry is intertwined with the local economy
24:29in less direct ways too.
24:32Let's say something like 80% are directly getting benefit from tourism.
24:37The rest of the 20% are getting indirect benefits.
24:41But how they can benefit is from the labour or the guiding services or the employment.
24:47Or they can sell the agricultural products to the trekkers
24:51on the main hotels and lodges or mountaineering expeditions.
25:00The most visible examples of this relationship are tea houses.
25:04Tea houses are lodges that serve as basic accommodations on trekking routes around Everest.
25:11But supplying these tea houses, whether by back
25:16or by yak, is a logistical nightmare.
25:20And if supplies do manage to arrive, they're expensive.
25:24One sack of rice costs $60, a gallon of gas, $113.
25:31But premium prices don't always mean premium service.
25:35Accommodations for climbers look different from the more basic lodging for porters.
25:41And for the locals who own these tea houses,
25:44keeping a business afloat on top of the world is no easy feat.
25:50Up here, a single cup of milk tea costs nearly 10 times what it does in the valleys of Nepal.
25:57One of the main reasons is the amount of effort it takes to get supplies up the mountain.
26:04That responsibility falls to porters.
26:11At 18 years old, Shashanth is one of the youngest porters in his trekking party.
26:20Today, there are around 20 kilometres between him and his destination.
26:25A tea house in Vingboche.
26:28I can carry 40-45 kilos of luggage.
26:32But I don't carry much because I don't want to spend a lot of money.
26:37And when I'm down here, I feel like I'm in a different place.
26:48They carry supplies over 100 kilometres and up 5,300 metres of elevation to base camp.
26:55Under Nepalese law, trekking porters are supposed to carry no more than 30 kilos.
27:01But this is often ignored.
27:04And some commercial porters, paid by the load, carry more than their own body weight.
27:13Further along the path to the tea house, a helicopter lands to conduct a rescue operation.
27:19A stark reminder of how dangerous this job is.
27:22But the dangerous conditions haven't deterred the traffic.
27:26Even at these high elevations, climbers, guides and yaks flow through the narrow trails.
27:37After seven hours of hiking, Shashanth finally arrives at a porterhouse.
27:44This is Vingboche, about 4,400 metres above sea level.
27:49Typically, porters aren't required to pay for lodging, only the food they eat.
28:06Climbers and guides stay separate from porters,
28:09so that they don't have to worry about getting lost.
28:14Climbers and guides stay separate from porters at more spacious lodges.
28:20These lodges offer more amenities, but are often too expensive for porters.
28:26Shashanth makes about $11 to $12 a day.
28:30He says he spends half and saves the rest.
28:34Shashanth hopes to one day become a trekking guide, and eventually a mountain guide.
28:39But for now, he's enjoying a comfortable place to sleep and a hot meal.
29:10Travellers rest at Vingboche for two days to acclimate to the high elevation.
29:17But Shashanth can't relax for long.
29:20After a day of rest, it's time to pack up and get back on the trail.
29:40It's a snowy April day in Ferreche.
29:44This is a popular stop for climbers descending from base camp.
29:48But this storm could last days, and the visibility is low.
29:53A foreboding sign for anyone on their way down the mountain.
29:57But inside, Shivabhadur Basnet already has a fire going.
30:03He burns dried yak dung instead of wood, because it's cheaper and widely available.
30:09During the busy season, 20 to 50 people cram in here each night.
30:35Shiva has run this tea house for seven years.
30:39It's a frequent stop for porters returning from Everest base camp.
31:10Further up the mountain, there are limited accommodations for porters.
31:15If they don't have a place to stay, many hike down to Ferreche after delivering the climbers' luggage.
31:22Porters wake up early and hike about two and a half kilometres back up to meet trekking guides before the expedition sets off.
31:31So at times, Shiva must have breakfast ready at 3am.
31:35But tonight, the porters have a chance to rest, so Shiva is preparing a leisurely dinner for his guests.
31:43When flour costs $60 a sack, the options are limited.
31:47But Shiva makes the most out of what he has.
31:51On tonight's menu, noodles, stew and dindur, a thick flour porridge that's a staple food in this part of Nepal.
32:00This is the dindur, a thick flour porridge that's a staple food in this part of Nepal.
32:31Tea houses like this look different than the more modern accommodations available to climbers,
32:37some of whom are paying tens of thousands of dollars to summit Everest.
32:42Those lodges offer more space and better amenities, like separate rooms and showers.
32:47Depending on the location, climbers often pay less than $10 per night, up to about $60 if you include food and electricity.
33:00The lodges don't provide accommodation to climbers.
33:04Even if we don't have accommodation, we have to look for a place to stay.
33:08We don't know where the porters are.
33:11That's why we're looking for a place to stay.
33:17We're looking for a place where we can afford to stay.
33:23Lodges prioritise the foreign climbers, and while porters aren't explicitly banned,
33:27it's customary for them to stay elsewhere.
33:40But running a hotel at this altitude is hard work.
33:45Every drop of fuel, every piece of gear and every morsel of food he needs to keep the place running must be carried up one step at a time.
33:55Consequently, Shiva's operating costs are astronomical.
34:13And Shiva has to pass these prices on to his guests.
34:18The dindor Bajang is eating cost him 600 rupees, about double what it costs elsewhere in the country.
34:26But Shiva can't push prices too high.
34:29Despite the remote area, there is some competition.
34:33So Shiva works hard to ensure this is a comfortable place to stay.
34:37Additionally, local waste removal incentives provide Shiva with the opportunity to earn a little extra money.
35:08Even with the high cost of doing business, running a tea house still provides Shiva with more than he's able to earn in his village.
35:17He works here for six months to support his family and to send his kids to school.
35:23During the off-season, he returns home to farm potatoes and maize.
35:38Because we don't have enough money in our village, we have to work hard to make ends meet.
35:48Sometimes we don't have enough money to pay for our kids' education.
35:58But beyond the financial pressures, Shiva's livelihood provides an essential service to porters travelling on the mountain.
36:07We go wherever it's convenient for us to go.
36:12We go wherever it's convenient for us to go.
36:20We don't stay in places where it's not convenient for us to go.
36:25We go wherever it's convenient for us to go.
36:28For us, bread is everything.
36:32We can't call them porters.
36:37We can't call them porters.
36:40We are there for them.
36:42That's why they come to us.
36:48For Shiva, the hard work is worth it for the warmth and community the tea house provides.
36:55The atmosphere of the shared dormitory and small dining room is more like a home than a hotel.
37:02Despite the limited amenities, Sushant says he enjoys the camaraderie tea houses provide.
37:09I miss my family.
37:14I will return home as soon as I finish this trek.
37:39From here, the climbers fly back to Kathmandu, ending their journey.
37:49But for many porters, the season is still going.
37:54They turn around, tie up their bags, and start the trek again.
38:00The impact of the tourist economy on the Everest region goes far beyond dollars and cents.
38:06In recent years, images of overcrowding and piles of trash on the mountain's peak have provoked public outrage.
38:14Local residents are acutely aware of the environmental challenges facing their communities.
38:20An estimated 50 million people live on the Everest.
38:24An estimated 50 metric tons of waste still litter the slopes of the mountain.
38:29And increasing snowmelt has uncovered trash that has been buried under ice for decades.
38:35That's why locals, NGOs, and the Nepali government have banded together to coordinate a massive clean-up effort in the region.
38:45Waste efforts are carefully organized by the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee, or SPCC, a Shirpa-led non-governmental organization.
38:55Climbing guides carry down waste from higher camps and combine it with trash at base camp.
39:02This includes plastic, food scraps, and human waste.
39:07This includes plastic, food scraps, and human waste.
39:37As of 2023, 2,306 expedition groups had attempted or summited the mountain, and each group generates a lot of trash.
40:07At base camp, Suraj sorts the waste into burnable and non-burnable piles and bundles them for porters.
40:18The porters then carry the trash on their backs or via yaks down the mountain to designated collection sites.
40:25At landfills managed by the SPCC, workers like Girla Shrai sort and pack the trash.
40:33This is where we collect the trash.
40:38This is where we collect the trash.
40:46This is where we collect the trash.
41:04This is where we collect the trash.
41:12This is where we collect the trash.
41:18Some of the bags Girla Shrai is packing are part of the Carry Me Back program, a crowdsourced waste transportation system.
41:25The program is managed by Saganmata Next, an organization seeking to demonstrate alternative ways to process all this waste.
41:35To remove it, that's a challenge because we don't have roads and transportation vehicles.
41:42So we made something we called Carry Me Back.
41:45It's a small bag, weighs up to one kilo, and we offer everyone who returns back from higher up, going back to the entry point Lukla,
41:55to take one bag, one kilo, and carry it one day down.
42:00Lukla is the site of Everest's airport and the gateway to the region.
42:06From here, the sorted waste is flown back to Kathmandu, where it's processed further at recycling centers.
42:14Saganmata Next first trialled Carry Me Back in 2019.
42:18During five weeks, we had 2,500 participants, and they carried back 5,500 bags, so around five tons, in a test situation.
42:30And that was very, very kind of encouraging.
42:33In 2023, Carry Me Back scaled it up to eight metric tons.
42:38But the organization's efforts don't stop there.
42:42It also repurposes the trash it helps to collect.
42:45One way it does this is through its partnership with Moware.
42:50Moware sources recycled bottle caps collected from Everest and nearby mountains.
43:00Upcycling waste into souvenirs like these.
43:06The molds are inspired by the topography of the Himalayas.
43:09Saganmata Next's Experience Center also hosts an artist-in-residence program,
43:15where artists like Jo Rankine repurpose discarded trash.
43:20The pieces that I've chosen come from a big waste pit that's below the Namche helipad.
43:26So I've taken my backpack down and collected all the pieces that I want to work with, and I've brought them back up here to the lab.
43:31And now I'm working on a sculpture, which I'm going to place onto this metal grid down here.
43:36And this is a real challenge because the metal is so corroded.
43:40So every time I've tried to make a hole, it breaks a little bit.
43:48While Saganmata Next was established to alleviate the waste problem,
43:53Moware has been working on a new project.
43:56While Saganmata Next was established to alleviate the waste problem on Everest and in the Khumbu region,
44:04its founders bear no animosity toward the climbers responsible.
44:08Well, I think we all have to try to understand as much as possible
44:14what it means to be up climbing on a mountain like Everest.
44:18Most people going up on that mountain are actually struggling pretty hard,
44:23both to be safe and to be able to scale and go to the summit.
44:30And then, of course, most importantly, to be able to come back down safely.
44:35The nature of it itself makes it almost impossible to have, let's say,
44:41100 percent of all the waste that is up there to be brought down.
44:47So hopefully we also get that message out in the world that there are many efforts
44:51to try to alleviate the problems.
44:57The SPCC's waste management system is required for expedition agencies and locals alike,
45:04but it comes at a cost.
45:06It mandates fees based on the amount of waste generated by each expedition.
45:12The SPCC charges 210 rupees per kg for women's waste.
45:17Other types of waste are also charged in small amounts.
45:22For example, the waste from polling stations, glass containers,
45:26and the waste from the sewage system are also charged in small amounts.
45:33Climbers are also subject to fees and regulations imposed by the Nepalese government.
45:39It requires climbers to pay a $4,000 deposit,
45:43which will only be returned if they bring down at least 8 kg of trash,
45:48not including oxygen tanks or human waste.
45:52This regulation is meant to incentivise climbers
45:55to help clean the decade's worth of trash on the highest parts of the mountain.
46:00The fine can be inconvenient for climbers and their guides,
46:03like Phurba Wangchu Sherpa, who struggle to meet the requirement.
46:08We only eat plastic food.
46:11We don't get 8-16 kg of rubbish.
46:15We don't get 8-16 kg of rubbish.
46:18We don't get 8-16 kg of rubbish.
46:21We don't get 8-16 kg of rubbish.
46:24We don't get 8-16 kg of rubbish.
46:27We don't get 8-16 kg of rubbish.
46:30We don't get 8-16 kg of rubbish.
46:32It's not like that.
46:35If we take a 16 kg load to our garden,
46:40it might get filled up,
46:43and if we bring all the oxygen tanks,
46:46there will be no rubbish left.
46:49We only have energy when we carry plastic bags.
46:53We have choppers, but we can't use them.
46:57It's difficult.
46:59While oxygen cylinders don't count towards the 8kg of waste required per climber,
47:05they're too expensive to leave behind.
47:08Each cylinder costs $600,
47:11and that price has incentivised climbers to return them,
47:14instead of leaving them on the mountain.
47:29If something happens to a cylinder,
47:32its owner will come down with it.
47:36Because these are very expensive goods,
47:40we do expeditions where we find these cylinders,
47:43and then we bring them down.
47:45But these cylinders are not to be left in the mountains.
47:49They are very expensive,
47:51so almost all the cylinders come down.
48:00In 2019, the Nepalese government enlisted the National Army
48:05to assist in cleaning up Mount Everest
48:08and other heavily trafficked mountains.
48:11The annual programme, the Mountain Cleanup Campaign,
48:14costs the government $7.5 million.
48:18In 2023, the army, in conjunction with Sherpa guides,
48:22collected about 36 metric tonnes of waste.
48:28Despite recent cleanup efforts,
48:31Everest's climate is still under threat.
48:34A 2022 study found that in about 25 years,
48:38Everest's highest glacier lost 2,000 years' worth of ice.
48:43The receding ice revealed decades' worth of trash,
48:47but also some of the hundreds of bodies on the mountain.
48:51Removing a single dead body can cost as much as $70,000,
48:56and even occasionally the lives of the climbers tasked with recovering them.
49:02But the impact of pollution on Everest isn't limited to the mountain.
49:07About 2 billion people live around and downstream of the Himalayan mountains
49:12in Nepal, China, India, and other regions in South and East Asia.
49:18A study of snow and stream water extracted from Everest in 2019
49:23found concentrations of microplastics, predominantly polyester fibres.
49:28Toxic heavy metals, pathogens, and PFAS, known as forever chemicals,
49:34have also been detected in Everest's snow and water.
49:38Concerns over the polluted water supply have led locals to consider changing their water sources.
49:53The toilets are full.
49:55There's not much to do here.
49:58So we bring water from the other side of the glacier.
50:09And for those who earn a living from Everest tourism and mountaineering,
50:13alleviating the problem is an existential issue.
50:18The pollution is increasing.
50:23The temperature is increasing.
50:28There won't be any snow on the mountains.
50:32There will only be black stones.
50:35There won't be many tourists.
50:37We need to control the pollution to preserve the natural beauty.
50:43If we don't manage this problem,
50:48we won't be able to recognize the Himalayas as the most beautiful mountains in the world.
50:55It will be very difficult to manage.
51:06But even with improved environmental management
51:09and increased economic opportunity in the region,
51:12the truth is that the future of Everest is unclear.
51:17In 2024, Nepal issued fewer climbing permits for Everest than it did in 2023.
51:24And recently, more climbers have opted to tackle the peak from the Chinese side of the mountain,
51:31putting pressure on Nepal's Everest industry.
51:35Still, some of those who make their living here, like Shashank,
51:39see a future guiding tourists up the mountain.
51:45I'm a climber. I'm a guide.
51:48When I become a climber, I want to take a few guests with me.
51:58Hey, it's me.
52:01I'm the Nepali Popcorn.
52:09Unlike Phurba Wangchu, Shashank is able to pursue his education.
52:14Still, the mountain compels him.
52:19I want to be a strong climber.
52:28I want to be a famous climber.
52:32I want to become a climber.
52:40But not everyone shares Shashank's optimism.
52:43Others, like Phurba Wangchu, dream of a future for their children
52:47beyond the mountain slopes.
52:51I don't want to do this job anymore.
52:55I've spent all my money on my son's education.
53:01I don't want to become a master's degree or a bachelor's degree.
53:06It's a matter of pride.
53:11I don't want to do it.
53:17I don't want to become a master's degree or a bachelor's degree.
53:22I don't want to become a master's degree or a bachelor's degree.
53:27I don't want to become a master's degree or a bachelor's degree.
53:32I don't want to become a master's degree or a bachelor's degree.