Mount Everest Base Camp has been closed by China from the Tibetan side for those who don’t have climbing permits. This is to deal with the escalating waste problem at the site which means tourists can only go as far as to the monastery slightly below 5200 meters. Base Camp from the southern side in Nepal is visited by more tourists but it has increased steadily from the Chinese side as well over the past years. due to the accessibility by car from the Chinese side, the base camp was more popular whereas the Nepalese base camp takes almost two weeks of hike. The world’s highest peak is coping with mounting amount of rubbish for years due to the increased number of visitors.
Now tourist can’t go Rongbuk Monastery (5,000m) but mountaineers with climbing permit will still be allowed to use the higher camp. In December, the official announcement of closure was made and three clean-up operations last spring had collected eight tones of waste which includes including human faeces and mountaineering equipment. This year’s clean-up will try to remove the bodies of mountaineers died at the death zone above 8,000 meters. Due to cold and high altitude, bodies often remain on the mountains for years or even decades.