Royal Mountain Travel Magazine Royal Mountain Travel Magazine Issue 1 | Page 46

© RMT

Locals of Mustang have assured that they
would not bar entry of foreign trekkers to
Upper Mustang, according to government
officials. Officials of the Ministry of
Tourism and Civil Aviation, Department
of Immigration and Nepal Tourism Board
(NTB) announced that the tourism ministry
has prepared a guideline for the distribution
of 60% of royalty collected from trekkers
heading to Upper Mustang. The proposal
for the distribution of 60% of the royalty
fee at local level has been forwarded to the
Ministry of Finance for approval. A couple
of months ago, Mustang locals had warned
that they wouldn’t allow entry of foreign
trekkers to Upper Mustang. More of the
royalty collected from trekkers is not spent
in the district. (www.taan.org.np)

Eight Tonnes of Garbage Collected
from Everest Region

At the initiation of Everest Summiteers’
Association (ESA), the government, Eco
Himal, Nepal Mountaineering Association
(NMA) and Sagarmatha Pollution Control
Committee were involved in the collection
of five tonnes of waste in the Everest
region from April 17 to May 27. The
government had provided Rs 7.5 million,
Carlsberg Beer Rs 2 million and NMA
Rs 2 million for the cleanup campaign.
Laxmi Bank contributed Rs 500,000 and
donors from Sweden provided $110,000
for the Save Everest Campaign that ESA
launched in 2008. Working for a month,
29 mountaineers brought to Namche 8.1
tonnes of waste dumped in the Everest
region since 1953, where 3.2 tonnes
of waste, mainly plastics and papers,
were disposed of the rest of the waste,
including oxygen cylinders, helicopter
debris, metals, cans and bottles, were
sent to Kathmandu. About 35,000 foreign
visitors accompanying some 80,000
porters and helpers visit the Everest
region every year according to the Ministry
of Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoTCA).
About 2,000 tonnes of waste has been
dumped in the Himalayas, including 80
tonnes in the Everest region, since 1953.
(www.trekntour.com)

46

No Restrictions for Entry in Upper
Mustang

Thamel Clean-up Campaign

As a part of 32nd World Tourism Day celebrations, Trekking Agencies’ As