Do we really need to get anywhere and in any way just because technically we can do it?
That is the uncomfortable question that appears when you see the video of Camp IV of Everest, at almost 8,000 metres of altitude, full of abandoned tents, oxygen bottles, remains of material and traces of an adventure that, for many, ends in a summit photo. For others, however, it starts later: when the garbage remains, the risk, the ice that preserves everything and the almost absurd impossibility of cleaning what has been left behind.
Because the problem is not just climbing Everest. The problem is climbing thinking that the mountain is a scenario and not an extremely fragile ecosystem. An epic set to validate a personal experience, a brand, a promise of improvement or a publication on networks.
It's not about demonizing the adventure. Nor to deny the symbolic strength of mountaineering. Climbing a great mountain can be a transformative, demanding and deeply human experience. But the question is another: when does a personal experience cease to be legitimate if its environmental, logistical and human cost is unacceptable?
In recent years, more than 4,000 litres of urine per day have been discharged directly into the glacier. Every season, only on Everest, 60 tons of material, food, tents and kitchens are carried up and only 8.9 tons are brought down. Yes, the difference remains at more than 5,000 metres of altitude.
And here comes the real debate: responsibility
Sustainability cannot be a nice speech before the trip and an excuse after. If an activity requires artificial oxygen, carriers, helicopters, waste that is difficult to remove and subsequent campaigns to repair the damage, perhaps the question should not be only how much it costs to go up in terms of materials, but what the real cost of that impact is.
Paying a fee to calm the conscience is no longer enough. Compensating should mean ensuring that the impact is measured, reduced and repaired, with transparency and rigorous traceability. We must be aware of our impact and be able to measure it in order to design environmental strategies that allow us to recover natural environments.
Perhaps the time has come to redefine what we mean by conquering a mountain. Perhaps conquering Everest is no longer reaching the top, but having the maturity to understand how we get there.
If we want to live extraordinary experiences, we will have to assume extraordinary responsibilities.