Studija objavljena u Regional Environmental Change pokazuje da je ljudska aktivnost na Everest Base Campu tokom prolećne sezone 2023. dovela do topljenja skoro 5.000 tona snega i leda. Autori procenjuju da je sama mokraća planinara zaslužna za oko 155 tona otopljenog materijala. Procene ne uključuju toplotu od helikoptera i penjača, što znači da je stvarni uticaj verovatno veći.
Mokraća planinara topi stotine tona leda na Everestu: studija otkriva 155 tona uticaja
Snapshot taken from a video shows a DJI drone flying over Khumbu Icefall during a delivery test on Mount Qomolangma from the Nepali side, April 30, 2024. DJI has successfully completed the first-ever drone delivery tests on Mount Qomolangma from the Nepali side, paving the way for facilitating high-altitude mountaineering, emergency rescue and environmental protection operations, the Chinese drone maker announced Wednesday. A DJI FlyCart 30 was used in the April tests, during which three oxygen bottles and 1.5 kg of other supplies were flown from the Base Camp (at an altitude of 5,364 meters) to Camp 1 (at about 6,000 meters) of the world's highest peak, and trash was carried down on the return trip. (Photo by Xinhua via Getty Images)
Nova studija ukazuje da ljudska aktivnost u Everest Base Campu dovodi do znatnog topljenja snega i leda na glečeru Khumbu — a sama mokraća planinara procenjena je da je odgovorna za otapanje oko 155 tona.
This photograph taken on May 3, 2024 shows mountaineers at the Khumbu Glacier during their ascend to Mount Everest's summit, in Nepal. A 54-year-old Nepalese climber known as "Everest Man" reached the peak of the world's highest mountain for a record 30th time on May 22, 2024, three decades after his first summit. (Photo by Tsering Pemba Sherpa / AFP via Getty Images)
Šta su otkrili istraživači?
Istraživači su analizirali uticaj aktivnosti tokom prolećne sezone penjanja 2023. na Khumbu glečeru, gde se nalazi Everest Base Camp. Rad objavljen u časopisu Regional Environmental Change pokazuje da je ukupna količina toplote koju je generisao kamp verovatno dovela do topljenja skoro 5.000 tona snega i leda.
GORAKSEHP, NEPAL - OCTOBER 12: A crow flies in the sky against the Sagarmatha mountain range; a small blue trash bin has been left of the edge of the Khumbu glacier on October 12, 2024 in Gorakshep, Sagarmatha Region, Nepal. The growing popularity of trekking in Nepal has resulted in various forms of pollution spoiling the fragile ecosystem. Gorakshep is the last human settlement on the Nepal side before trekkers arrive at Everest Base Camp just 3.5km away. Here, waste management issues due to trekking tourism are apparent with plastic bottles and debris from lodges and restaurants dumped just meters from the town centre. Early in the autumn trekking season, Everest Base Camp itself also shows signs of waste mismanagement. (Photo by Mailee Osten-Tan/Getty Images)
Od tog iznosa, naučnici su procenili da je mokraća planinara doprinela otapanju oko 155 tona. Autori napominju da analiza ne uključuje dodatnu toplotu koju proizvode helikopteri ili sami penjači, pa je stvarni uticaj verovatno veći.
GORAKSEHP, NEPAL - OCTOBER 12: A view of Gorakshep with the Khumbu glacier on the right on October 12, 2024 in Gorakshep, Sagarmatha Region, Nepal. The growing popularity of trekking in Nepal has resulted in various forms of pollution spoiling the fragile ecosystem. Gorakshep is the last human settlement on the Nepal side before trekkers arrive at Everest Base Camp just 3.5km away. Here, waste management issues due to trekking tourism are apparent with plastic bottles and debris from lodges and restaurants dumped just meters from the town centre. Early in the autumn trekking season, Everest Base Camp itself also shows signs of waste mismanagement. (Photo by Mailee Osten-Tan/Getty Images)
Tehnički detalji i kontekst
Studija kombinuje terenska zapažanja i modeliranje da bi kvantifikovala lokalni toplotni bilans na glečeru. Iako brojka od 155 tona može zvučati iznenađujuće, ona je deo šire slike: ljudska prisutnost, oprema, otpad i vozila na velikim nadmorskim visinama menjaju lokalne uslove i ubrzavaju topljenje.
Paralelno s tim, u aprilu 2024. kompanija DJI testirala je transport opreme dronom na Everestu. Tokom testa 30. aprila 2024. korišćen je DJI FlyCart 30 za dostavu tri boce sa kiseonikom i 1,5 kg drugih potrepština sa Base Camp-a (5.364 m) do Kampa 1 (~6.000 m), a na povratku je dron prevozio otpad.
Problemi upravljanja otpadom
Snimci iz Gorakshepa i Base Camp-a pokazuju da turizam povećava pritisak na krhki ekosistem: plastične boce, kontejneri i drugi otpad često završavaju blizu naselja i ledenih polja. Autori studije i lokalni aktivisti pozivaju na strožije mere za upravljanje otpadom i održivije prakse na ruti ka Everestu.
Planina Mount Everest (Qomolangma) leži na granici Nepala i Kine; Everest Base Camp na glečeru Khumbu nalazi se na nepalskoj strani. Rezultati studije naglašavaju kako i male, lokalne aktivnosti na velikim nadmorskim visinama mogu imati merljiv klimatski i ekološki efekat.
Zaključak: Studija poziva na bolje upravljanje posetiocima i otpadom na Everestu, ali i na dodatna istraživanja koja bi uključila toplotu od helikoptera i samih penjača kako bi se dobila potpuna procena uticaja ljudske prisutnosti na glečere.
Pomozite nam da budemo bolji.
