Directorate of Central Karakoram National Park (CKNP) Gilgit-Baltistan has completed the cleaning campaign from K2 base camp to camp 4 and delivered 1610 kg of garbage to the base camp.
A statement issued by the Directorate of CKNP on Thursday said that during the campaign, all items used during the expedition, including oxygen cylinders, tins, old ropes etc which pose a threat and polluted the sensitive ecosystem of the K2 peak, were cleaned for the first time up to camp 4 with the help of regular expert climbers. The statement further said that during the campaign, 1610 kg garbage was brought back to K2 base camp and initial expenses incurred during this cleaning campaign were covered by the amount of fees collected from the tourists.
The campaign was officially started on 19 July 2022 with a formal briefing session at CKNP Headquarters Skardu and concluded on 18 August 2022. This team of adventurers reached K2 base camp on July 24 and set up regular camp and regular work from July 26 keeping in mind the movement of international and other mountaineers going to K2 summit and weather conditions. Despite of strong winds with hard work, all the garbage in the campus was cleaned and transferred to K2 base camp and handed over to CKNP staff.
It should be noted that this year, the trek was overcrowded due to the hundreds of people heading together, and the waste was correspondingly high, and unfortunately most of the international, national and local climbers carried their waste up to their tents. Dropped in various upper camps of Tou peak, due to which there was a fear of severe negative impact on the ecosystem, the CKNP constituted team succeeded in cleaning the garbage by working with full dedication.
