Mount Everest Climbing Garbage Polished Into Artwork

Climate change illustration. (Photo: Markus Spiske / Unsplash)

JAKARTA - A group of environmentalists who are members of the Sagarmatha Next Center are collecting trash from the hiking trail of Mount Everest, Nepal.

This garbage is not to be thrown away but will be polished into works of art displayed in a nearby gallery in Syangboche.

Art project director Tommy Gustafsson, launched Reuters, Saturday, January 22, said that the effort was made so that the highest mountain in the world does not turn into a garbage dump. Also for climbers to be more responsible for personal waste.

Art projects originate from waste such as used oxygen bottles, torn tents, ropes, broken stairs, cans and plastic wrapping.

Garbage collected is either carried down from the mountains or collected from the tea houses along the hiking trail. Later, the waste will be separated directly by the local environmental group, the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee.

There are quite a lot of artists involved. Some of them are foreign artists, as well as local artists. In the process of creating artwork, each artist will train local residents to turn waste into something of value, according to the principle of recycling.

"We wanted to show how you can turn solid waste into valuable works of art, and generate jobs and income," said Gustafsson.

"We hope to change people's perceptions about waste and manage it," he added.

Garbage that is thrown away or burned will certainly cause air and water pollution. Because of that, Gustafsson continues to invite climbers to promote a campaign to bring back trash.

The idea is in line with what the environmental group Eco Himal has encouraged. One of its members, Phinjo Sherpa, said that the initiative to bring back trash is the right step, so that Everest does not become a landfill.

For this reason, it is hoped that Everest climbers will always carry a bag that can accommodate 1 KG of trash to Lukla Airport.

"We can manage large amounts of waste if visitors are involved," said Sherpa.

Previously, Everest was first climbed by New Zealanders Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay in 1953. Meanwhile, As of 2019, more than 60,000 climbers and guides have visited the area.