Climate change is altering the face of the Himalayas, devastating farming communities and making Mount Everest increasingly treacherous to climb, some of the world’s top mountaineers have warned.
Apa Sherpa, the Nepali climber who has conquered Mount Everest a record 21 times, said he was disturbed by the lack of snow on the world’s highest peak, caused by rising temperatures.
“In 1989 when I first climbed Everest there was a lot of snow and ice but now most of it has just become bare rock. That, as a result, is causing more rockfalls which is a danger to the climbers,” he said.
Photo: AFP
照片:法新社
Apa Sherpa would not rule out the possibility of Everest being unclimbable in the coming years.
The 51-year-old father of three, dubbed “Super Sherpa,” began his working life as a farmer but turned to the tourism industry and mountaineering after he lost all his possessions when a glacial lake burst in 1985.
Research published by the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) last year showed Nepal’s glaciers had shrunk by 21 percent over 30 years.
Scientists say the effects of climate change could be devastating, as the Himalayas provide food and energy for 1.3 billion people living in downstream river basins.(AFP)
氣候變遷正改變喜馬拉雅山的風貌、破壞農業社群，同時讓聖母峰的攀登更形危險，一些世界頂尖的登山家警告說。
創下二十一次征服聖母峰紀錄的尼泊爾登山家阿帕‧雪巴指出，他對全球最高峰因氣溫上升，導致缺雪感到不安。
「一九八九年我首度攀登聖母峰時，那兒有許多雪與冰，但現在該處多半變成了裸露的岩石，結果這引發更多危害登山客的岩崩，」他說。
阿帕‧雪巴不排除幾年後聖母峰恐無法攀越的可能性。
五十一歲、身為三個孩子之父的他綽號「超級雪巴」，一開始他以務農為生，然而一九八五年一個冰河湖潰堤，他失去所有財產後轉行觀光業與登山。
總部設在加德滿都的國際山區整合發展中心（ICIMOD）去年發表的研究顯示，尼泊爾的冰河三十年來縮減了百分之二十一。
科學家說，由於喜馬拉雅供應生活在下游河川盆地的十三億人口食物與能源，因此氣候變遷效應恐深具毀滅性。
（法新社／翻譯：魏國金）
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