The devastating avalanches on Mount Everest, in 2014 and 2015, highlighted some longstanding
problems for the climbing industry there. Particularly for local Sherpa guides where
issues like overcrowding, safety, meagre wages and insurance are of immense concern. These
problems have left many wondering why the Nepal government hasn’t done more to support
the Sherpa guides, who risk their lives so that foreign climbers can attempt Everest.
The desire to ‘conquer’ Everest has been on the rise ever since Sherpa, Tenzing Norgay
and New Zealander, Edmund Hillary first summited the peak in 1953. For decades, climbing the
world’s tallest mountain remained the reserve for hardened explorers but in the 1990s, advances
in technology made summiting the mountain an attainable dream.
[BOB] It isn't until you get down off the mountain that it really strikes you. Then
all of a sudden it hits you that you've just lived your dream, or you've accomplished one
of the greatest accomplishments that you can get...
That’s Robert Hoffman, he’s a former Everest expedition leader from California who’s
summited twice. And like so many who have made the climb, he relied on the invaluable
support of local guides to reach the peak.
Most guides, like Tenzing Norgay, hail from the Sherpa community, a small ethnic group
who reside at high altitudes across Nepal, India and Tibet. The commercialization of
Everest has encouraged many from the community become guides despite the perilous nature
of the work.
The job requires guides to make multiple trips up and down the mountain, carrying heavy loads
for climbers. And In doing so risking frostbite, avalanches, and death. On average, guides
typically earn up to $8,000 in the three month climbing season, that’s more than ten times
the average Nepali’s salary. But many argue that this wage is not a fair one, especially
given the dangers.
The business of climbing Everest can be very lucrative for tour companies and the Nepal
Government. On average, the cost to climb Everest is around $50,000 dollars, with 600
people attempting each year. Together with revenue generated from other mountains in
the Himalayas and related tourism, it’s estimated that the climbing industry in Nepal
is worth $360 million dollars per year. That’s about 2% of the nation’s GDP. Which is why,
some would reason, there is such a huge problem with overcrowding.
...The amount of people today takes a lot away from the experience of Everest. It's
a huge mountain ... but there is a finite limit to how many people you can put there
at any given time.... [BOB] Unfortunately, the Nepalese government
is very greedy. They don't want to see any reduction in the numbers of people climbing
the mountain because of the money that they're making.
The pressure that crowds put on local guides is just one of the ways the Everest industry
has negatively impacted the Sherpa community.
Norbu Tenzing is the son of Everest pioneer Tenzing Norgay and he’s the Vice President
of the American Himalayan Foundation. It’s an organization that is helping the Sherpa
community challenge poor working conditions, something he feels his father would have felt
strongly about.
NORBU ...The mountain is not well managed by the Nepalese government. ...I think
he would have a lot to say about the imbalance in the issues with risk and inequity that
people suffer on the mountain.
And the Sherpa community is beginning to find their voice. In 2014, they issued a list of
demands for the Nepal government to change the way Everest is run. According to Janbu
Sherpa, a retired guide who summited the mountain five times over 15 years, this goes far beyond
crowd control.
[JANBU] I wanted to see continue provide the safety tools....Improving the communications
and providing the proper wages. ...if there's any tragedy ….make sure their family is
protected by the companies ... Or by the government.
Janbu is referring to a push to increase life insurance payouts for guides killed on Everest.
This is one the demands the Nepal Government has met, increasing the amount from $10,000
dollars to $15,000 in 2014. However, Norbu stresses this still doesn’t stretch very
far. In fact, today the payout is actually worth less than it once was.
NORBU ….the sole breadwinner is usually the father or the husband. When
that person dies, it's a massive loss. NORBU
When you compare that level of insurance with what sherpas had some 30, 40 years ago...that
insurance covered them enough so that the widow could build a tea house, the kids go
to school, they could build a home. The insurance these days barely covers the cost of the funeral.
The Nepal government has also met some of the other demands made by the Sherpa guides,
like banning inexperienced climbers from Everest and changing routes up the mountain to ones
that are less prone to avalanches. For now though, many within the Sherpa community still
don’t feel that the risks outweigh the benefits.
[NORBU] Climbing Everest, being on an expedition on Everest is a very good way of earning a
significant amount of income in a very short period of time. Obviously it comes at very
huge risks. ….The question is it worth it.
Want to know more about the plight of Sherpa guides on Everest? Then tune into the premiere
of Sherpa, airing Saturday April 23rd at 9/8 central as part of elevation weekend on Discovery.
The film is an in-depth look at how Sherpa community came together to reclaim Everest
following a deadly avalanche in April, 2014.
As always, thanks for watching and don’t forget to subscribe