Nepal
Waste Management Projects, Everest Trek, Nepal
State of Nepal
Chomolungma (Mount Everest)
Kathmandu
140, 800 km2
23 million
Nepali
Hindu (80%) Buddhist (10.7%)
Muslim (4.2%) Kirat (3.6%)
Life expectancy: 61.2 years (men)
62 years (women)
Literacy:
54% of population
Country: District:
Capital:
Area:
Population:
Language:
Major religions:
Pokhara
Mt Everest
Kathmandu
Nepal is a landlocked country between India and Tibet. Its landscape is uncommonly
diverse, ranging from the humid and lush Terai in the country’s southern-most region
to the lofty Himalayas in the north. It is home to eight of the world’s 14 highest peaks,
including Chomolungma (Mount Everest) – the traditional Tibetan/Sherpa name for this
mountain. This rugged Himalayan terrain is complemented by a mosaic of cultures, ethnic
groups and over thirty ethnic-based languages. It is also famous for its beautiful temples
and places of worship, natural landscape, trekking and adventure sports, all of which
make it one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations.
Nepal is a developing nation facing soaring population growth and enormous economic,
social and environmental challenges. Ninety per cent of the 23 million population lives
in rural areas and isolated villages. The management of the environment and large
amounts of rubbish is a major concern and presents its own challenges. Despite cleanups of the landscape and villages along the Mount Everest Trek, garbage continues to be
a problem. It is difficult for us to imagine that traditional villages and communities with
limited, or in some cases no running water or electricity, have extreme difficulty managing
contemporary forms of waste.
Waste Management Projects, Everest Trek, Nepal
waste management
The Garbage Trail
AWF in the Himalayas
Despite massive clean-ups in the Himalayas, garbage continues to blight the
natural and urban environment. Villages and monasteries along the Mount Everest
Trek lack appropriate garbage management facilities and are unable to cope with
contemporary waste. Tourists using the Trek discard garbage they are unable to
dispose of in other ways due, in part, to the lack of facilities and ignorance.
AWF volunteers have been assisting Himalayan communities with waste
management and community development projects since 2003. The organisation
provides funding and volunteers for the development of waste management and
education programmes and the construction of waste facilities such as incinerators
and rubbish pits. With the help of the Lonely Planet Foundation, AWF has recently
been able to offer Nepali communities further assistance.
To help put this problem in perspective, the Mount Everest Trek is 120 kilometres
long, with an elevation gain of nearly 3500 metres. It is estimated that along some
sections of the Trek there are nearly two metric tonnes of garbage per kilometre
of tourist trail. This increases to 12 tonnes along some sections of the route. As
a result, the Trek leading to Mount Everest Base Camp has been nicknamed ‘the
garbage trail’.
Although waste production in the region is minimal compared with waste produced
in the West (and everything that can be, is reused), this waste is still posing
significant problems to the natural environment and wildlife. The mountainous and
inaccessible terrain makes removing rubbish extremely difficult, which means that
waste must be dealt with on the mountain.
Fortunately, the Sherpa and many local community groups, like the Himalayan Yeti
Club, understand the negative impact this can have on the environment and their
trekking-based economy.
A grant from the Lonely Planet Foundation, for example, has funded the
construction of rubbish pits at Sumjingma, Indingma and Ookpa, the design and
construction of an incinerator at the Sherlo Monastery, and the development of
waste reduction and environmental education programmes at the Junbesi Primary
School (one of the first schools built by Sir Edmund Hillary).
Waste Management Projects, Everest Trek, Nepal
Beau and Ang
“We got talking to villagers of
Pangkarma and learnt they
dispose of their waste in the
forest or river, because ‘it
goes away’. After discussing
this issue with the village
elders we came up with the
idea of the rubbish pits. Word
spread quickly, and more
villagers and then monks
from nearby monasteries
started asking for our help. So
what started off as one small
project ended up becoming a
multitude of works.”
Beau Beza
Beau Beza
AWF’s involvement in waste management projects in Nepal are directly linked
to the research of project leader Beau Beza, a landscape architect and founding
Director of AWF. The projects are an outcome of his completed PhD which
investigated the environment and waste management in the Himalaya.
Beau has led each of AWF’s projects in Nepal and has worked on community
development projects in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Norway, USA, Australia and Jordan.
He is also currently the Postgraduate Course Coordinator in the Environment and
Planning Programme at RMIT University.
Ang Tschering Sherpa (pictured centre) at a construction meeting with local villagers in Sumjingma.
Ang Tshering Sherpa
Ang Tshering Sherpa, pictured at centre, is AWF’s Field Leader in Nepal, and
is shown here at a June 2007 construction meeting with local villagers from
Sumjingma. Ang Tshering is a villager from Pangkarma and was Beau’s PhD
research assistant in 2002–2003. Ang Tshering has also gone on to establish a
medical centre at Indingma village, providing much needed medical services
for villagers surrounding Pangkarma and the Junbesi Valley.
Waste Management Projects, Everest Trek, Nepal
waste disposal
A wall of locally sourced stone is constructed around the pit to keep humans, cattle and wildlife from falling in.
Localising environmental change
The biggest challenges for AWF in developing these waste facilities
are localising environmental change and guarding against harm to
humans and animals. A waste management strategy is discussed with
the communities to assist management of their household rubbish. The
rubbish pits have been designed to prevent people and animals from
falling in, as well as to prevent animals from removing rubbish and redepositing it in nearby forests.
The footprint of rubbish pits and incinerators is relatively small.
By borrowing the form of adjacent structures and incorporating
local materials and construction techniques, the design aesthetic
complements Himalayan landscape.
Villagers involved in the construction of the waste disposal
pits at Sumjingma in June 2007.
The first rubbish pit was constructed in
Pangkarma in 2003.
Villagers are paid for their work through financial
assistance secured by AWF.
Waste Management Projects, Everest Trek, Nepal
incinerators
Beau Beza, John Bahoric, Ang Tshering Sherpa, Garry Ormston, Chandra Gurung and a Buddhist monk in front of the
completed and operational incinerator at the Sherlo Monastery.
Sherlo Monastery
In June 2007, AWF designed and constructed an incinerator at the Sherlo Monastery,
to help the 70 residing monks dispose of their waste.
Incineration is considered one of the most effective solutions to the waste problem in
this region, since it destroys or reduces the size of the material, so it can be buried in
waste pits, minimising the potential harm to humans or animals.
All materials are locally sourced and must be
carried to the construction site.
Local villagers and tradesmen are employed to
help with construction.
AWF volunteers work alongside local tradesmen.
Local construction techniques are used.
The effectiveness of any incinerator relies on the
proper sorting and management of waste prior
to commencement of incineration.
Monks studying at the Sherlo Monastery are
taught the principles of waste management
from a young age.
AWF member Dan Demant,
collaborated with project leader,
Beau Beza, and a Junbesi-based
builder to research and develop an
incinerator entirely sourced from
local materials and construction
techniques, yet capable of
creating and withstanding high
temperatures.
Since contemporary western
solutions rely on a series
of incinerator events and
reactions to burn waste
at required temperatures
of 800°C, this proved a
significant challenge.
Waste Management Projects, Everest Trek, Nepal
thank you
The local team that helped construct the incinerator at the Sherlo Monastery in June 2007. The construction crew was paid for its work, with assistance from the Lonely Planet Foundation.
Progress
Acknowledgements
To date, one incinerator has been constructed at the Sherlo Monastery, and a
total of eight rubbish pits have been built in the villages of Pangkarma, Mopung,
Phungmochhe, Sumjingma, Indingma and Ookpa. All have been developed utilising
local village design and construction techniques.
Client:
Various community organisations
AWF Project Manager:
Beau Beza, Landscape Architect, Former AWF Director
AWF Field Leader:
Ang Tshering Sherpa
The degree of waste found in and around communities, and in the natural
environment, has been significantly reduced. Word has spread quickly and
AWF has been invited back to continue its work in the region.
AWF Projects Team:
Garry Ormston, Architect, Dan Demant, Architect,
John Bahoric, Structural Engineer
Financial Assistance:
Lonely Planet Foundation & City of Melbourne
Several monasteries have requested AWF’s help to build incinerators similar to the
one designed for the Sherlo Monastery to help them deal with their waste.
Volunteers:
Many volunteers have participated in the realisation of
these projects – too many to list here.
You know who you are.
Thank you.
Waste reduction and environmental education programmes are to be introduced along
the Mount Everest Trek by AWF in partnership with the Junbesi-based Himalayan Yeti
Club (commencing from the village of Junbesi and terminating at Jiri). Construction
of further rubbish pits and incinerators are proposed, and the installation of a water
treatment programme is planned for communities throughout the region during 2008
– 2010.
None of the already completed projects would have been possible without the
commitment (and hard labour) of AWF volunteers and project leaders, and the
financial support of the Lonely Planet Foundation and City of Melbourne.