Clearing up Everest

A cross posting from my GeographyTeacher 2.0 blog.

If you haven't seen it before, it's a blog which shares some ideas from my classroom teaching, and resources that I use, or have created.

When we teach about extreme environments, we always include a short look at Mount Everest and what draws people to risk their lives climbing it. 

We discuss the mortality rate of climbers, and the disproportionate impact on the Sherpa who fix the ropes and ladders in the most dangerous area of the mountain: the Khumbu Glacier's icefall.

There is a growing number of permits being allocated in each climbing season, which adds to the overcrowding on the mountain - the delays this leads to can increase the risk to climbers, as they may have to spend longer in the 'death zone'.

Students always ask why they don't just remove the bodies from the mountain.

The BBC News published an article on their website which goes a long way to answering that question with some specifics about the cost, the process and the risks involved.