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(Image source: Flickr / topgold)
BY NATHAN BYRNE
The rules are tightening for Mount Everest expeditions.
This move comes after recent fights between sherpas and climbers on the mountain. Bravado
is being blamed for some of those battles. Climbers will now be required to " ... declare
beforehand whether they plan to set any new records, amid growing competition to set bizarre
milestones, including climbers standing on their heads or 'taking off their clothes while
on the summit.'" (Via The Telegraph)
As part of the tighter regulations, the Nepalese government will place a team at the Everest
base camp. (Via Wikimedia Commons / Luca Galuzzi)
Rules, though — as they say — are made to be broken. And officials say it'll be near
impossible to track what happens high on the mountaintop. So, what happens on Everest apparently
stays on Everest — because — 29,000 feet. (Via Wikimedia Commons / Olaf Rieck)
According to the BBC, a government liaison is required for each climbing team already.
But critics say no one's monitoring what happens once the expeditions move up the mountain.
That criticism has prompted a more hands-on approach by those responsible for keeping
an eye out on expeditions. (Via Flickr / topgold)
"They will be monitoring. They will be helping the expedition teams. They will be coordinating
rescues, and they'll also be there to watch over the mountain and protect the environment."
(Via CBC)
More than 30 expeditions take place on Everest each year. (Via NASA)