Speaking of Everest, here’s an interesting story from Grough.com, who are reporting that the Nepali governmental cabinet will meet at Everest Base Camp next month in an effort to draw attention to the impact of climate change on the mountain.
Madhav Kumar, the Prime Minister of Nepal, will be joined by his cabinet members who are deemed physically fit enough for the journey. The group will fly to Lukla, located at 9,383 feet, where they will board a helicopter that will ferry them up to EBC, located at 17,585 feet. The high altitude cabinet meeting is scheduled to begin later this week on December 4th, and is timed to precede a major climate conference to be held in Copenhagen soon.
For Nepal, the climate changes on Everest are quite an important matter. Not only is the mountain a valuable source of income for the country, the melting snows there help to feed the rivers and springs that deliver water to the villages in the Khumbu Valley below. As those streams dry up, villagers are having to hike several hours a day just to find water they need for day to day life. But those glaciers are retreating rapidly thanks to global climate change, and as they disappear, the amount of water provided to the valley below is going away too.
Just another way that the planet is changing around us, and an example of how it is having a direct impact on the lives of many.
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I'm wondering how they will acclimatize if they take the chopper from Lukla to EBC ?
Also taking this chopper is not very ecologic.
Wouldn't it be not better to hile and meet the locals + tourists to understand better what is happening ?
I thought exactly the same thing. It would be a better show piece if they made the trek and interacted with the locals.
I do know that the cabinet ministers all had to undergo physicals before hand, but I'm sure it'll still be a bit of a challenge dealing with such elevation gains so quickly.
This is one of the silliest ideas ever.
They are going to experience a 14,000 foot elevation gain in a matter of a couple of hours or so!
Even if no one is injured…they're going to feel like they're going to die…
Hmmm, maybe each official will get a commemorative puke bucket?
When walking to BC it typically takes people a week or so to get from Lukla to Everest. That's not because of the distance–it's because it takes that much time for most people to safely acclimate to the altitude.
I know it's a PR event, but I just hope it doesn't turn into a tragic news event.
Jon
http://www.therestofeverest.com
Maybe they'll be wearing O2 masks the entire time. 😉 That's what they did in the Maldives earlier this year when the cabinet held a "meeting" under water in scuba gear.
great adventures.