Government Mulls Stricter Safety Rules for Everest Climbers

Government authorities are weighing proposals to improve safety on the world's highest mountain, including requiring aspiring Everest climbers to first scale another peak in the country, officials said Thursday.

Mount Everest's 8,849-metre tall (29,000-foot) peak attracts hundreds of climbers every year, but industry insiders say some foreign mountaineers are ill-prepared for what remains a major test of endurance and resilience.

The proposed rules, which call for completing a 7,000-metre climb in Nepal, "are intended to make climbers on Everest more experienced and hopefully decrease accidents," tourism official Himal Gautam told AFP.

He said the measure would also help "diversify the peaks that attract climbers" and boost local economies beyond the Everest region.

It is part of a bill that already passed the National Assembly last week and now awaits a vote at the House of Representatives, which will be formed only after March 5 elections.

Even if endorsed, the proposed measures will not apply to this year's spring climbing season.

Some of Nepal's leading expedition operators have expressed their support.

"It is a positive move that will promote more experienced climbers on Everest and help make it safer," said Mingma Sherpa of Seven Summit Treks, one of the biggest expedition organisers in the country.

Lukas Furtenbach, of Austria-based Furtenbach Adventures, said he supported the proposal but questioned the requirement to climb a mountain in Nepal.

"Why does only a 7,000-metre peak in Nepal qualify you for Everest? If you have climbed all seven 8,000-metre peaks and countless 7,000-metre outside Nepal, that would not qualify a climber more?"

The proposed legislation would also require climbers to present health certificates and would eliminate the current $4,000 refundable garbage deposit.

Instead, mountaineers would contribute to a fund dedicated to cleaning Nepal's mountains and supporting mountaineering workers.

The Himalayan nation is home to eight of the world's 10 highest peaks and welcomes hundreds of climbers every year, making mountaineering a lucrative business.

The country has 462 peaks open for climbing and around 100 have never been summited. – AFP/RSS