Nepal is set to discontinue a long-standing waste deposit program on Mount Everest after authorities concluded it has failed to curb the growing accumulation of rubbish on the world’s highest peak.
The scheme, introduced more than a decade ago, required climbers to pay a refundable deposit of $4,000 (£2,960), which could be reclaimed if they returned with at least 8 kilograms of waste at the conclusion of their expedition. While the initiative aimed to encourage responsible waste disposal, officials say it has not delivered meaningful results, particularly at higher camps where discarded equipment and human waste remain highly visible and difficult to remove.
Tourism ministry officials confirmed that the deposit policy would be discontinued, describing it as having “failed to show a tangible result” and noting that it had become an administrative burden. Over the years, most climbers successfully reclaimed their deposits, undermining the scheme’s ability to incentivize real behavioural change.
Authorities point to the location of waste collection as a key factor in the scheme’s shortcomings. While climbers generally return rubbish from lower camps, large quantities of trash—such as food containers, abandoned tents, oxygen bottles, and human waste—remain scattered across higher altitudes.
“Climbers often prioritise bringing back oxygen cylinders from higher camps,” said Tshering Sherpa, chief executive of the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC), the body responsible for overseeing Everest waste control. “Other items like tents, cans, and boxes of packaged food and drinks are mostly left behind, which is why we continue to see so much waste piling up.”
An average climber produces up to 12 kilograms of waste during an Everest expedition, which typically lasts several weeks. However, officials say monitoring remains limited, especially above the Khumbu Icefall. Beyond this checkpoint, enforcement is challenging due to the dangerous and remote terrain, leaving higher camps largely unregulated.
In place of the refundable deposit, authorities plan to introduce a non-refundable clean-up fee, tentatively set at $4,000 (£2,960), pending parliamentary approval. Unlike the deposit system, the fee would generate a dedicated funding pool for enforcement and clean-up operations rather than relying on climbers’ voluntary compliance.
The collected funds are expected to support the establishment of additional checkpoints and the deployment of mountain rangers to monitor waste removal at higher camps. Tourism officials say the new system will complement a recently launched five-year mountain clean-up action plan aimed at addressing waste on Nepal’s major climbing peaks.
Although no comprehensive study has quantified the total volume of Everest waste, estimates suggest it runs into tens of tonnes, including human excrement, which does not decompose at freezing temperatures. The number of climbers attempting Everest has steadily increased in recent years, averaging roughly 400 annually, alongside hundreds of guides and support staff, intensifying the environmental pressure on the mountain.
Environmental groups and local authorities warn that without sustained monitoring and enforcement, any clean-up effort risks being confined to lower camps, leaving the higher-altitude problem largely unresolved. “If oversight is limited to lower elevations, waste at the more dangerous and remote camps will continue to accumulate,” Sherpa noted.
The shift from a refundable deposit to a mandatory clean-up fee reflects Nepal’s growing recognition that incentives alone are insufficient to change behaviour in extreme environments. With stricter enforcement, additional checkpoints, and dedicated funding, authorities hope to finally make a meaningful dent in the waste crisis on the world’s tallest mountain, preserving it for future generations.
