Did you know that mountain litter takes much longer to degrade at high altitudes: it takes up to 500 years for a soda can, 300 years for a plastic bottle and 5 years just for a chewing gum or cigarette butt!
And because numerous mountaineers did not always keep their trash in their bags in recent decades, 140,000 kilograms of waste remains in the Mt. Everest region for instance, while the number of visitors there is rocketing to new heights. Mountain litter is not only Everest’s problem – it’s becoming an issue for mountains worldwide, including the Alps.
The Alpenverein (Alpine Association) in Austria, the Austrian ‘Almdudler’ soft drink company and UN Environment have therefore decided to roll up their sleeves and organise an awareness-raising and clean-up event to celebrate World Environment Day.
Representatives of these partners are expected to sign a join moratorium on the peak of the famous and majestic Großvenediger, renewing their commitment to support freeing the mountains of disgraceful trash.
Since 1972, Alpenverein has an ongoing campaign named ‘Aktion Saubere Berge’, or the ‘Clean Mountains Campaign’ to tackle the problem of Alpine littering, raise awareness on the issue and promote sustainable tourism. With support from the Almdudler’ soft drink company, they for many years advocated clean and healthy mountain environments since many years and equipped Alpenverein cabins with bio-trash bags.
Join the well-known Austrian mountaineer Peter Habeler at the foot of the Großvenediger mountain – one of Austria’s Seven Summits – and help clean-up our mountain landscapes and be #withnature.
Building on UN Environment’s recently launched ‘Global Mountain Waste Outlook’* and several ongoing initiatives, the event aims to alert tourists ahead of the holiday season and show how waste management in mountain regions is a serious issue of global concern.
The tourism industry and lack of appropriate waste disposal systems are significantly contributing to the pollution of mountain environments. According to the Outlook, the most common forms of waste from mountaineering activities are human waste and other solid waste material used for equipment and supplies (e.g. tin cans, glass and plastic bottles, food packaging, ropes, batteries etc.).
Environmental impacts range from vegetation clearing and soil erosion to the altering of landscapes and water flows, wildlife displacement as well as water and air pollution.
While it may at first feel as if we'll have a mountain to climb, together, step-by-step, we can make a difference for our mountains and people further downhill.
For more information contact matthias.jurek@unvienna.org, +43 1 26060 4326 or mark.grassi@unenvironment.org, +41 299178279
*See also http://www.grida.no/publications/157
What? A mountain litter awareness event to celebrate World Environment Day in Austria
When? 24 June 2017
Where? in the Großvendiger areaTyrol, Austria.
Organisers?
Alpenverein www.alpenverein.at/saubereberge
"The Alpenverein has grown steadily since its inception, but has not only been understood as a pure mountain sports association. One hundred years later, we are more aware than ever that the beauty and unique nature of the Alps must be maintained, "says , Alpenverein President Andreas Ermacora .
The Austrian soft drink company “Almdudler”: www.almdudler.com
“At Almdudler, we care about Austrian nature and mountains with all our heart and are therefore advocating for the protection of Austria’s mountain regions since many years. In cooperation with the Austrian Alpine Club, we take responsibility for our domestic mountains and are dedicated to keep our mountains clean. It is important for us to regularly send out messages that raise awareness amongst the public and remind them about protecting our valuable nature. Since its founding year in 1957, Almdudler with its original Alpine herb recipe became the Austrian national beverage – an important cause to protect the preciousness of our domestic alpine region.” says Gerhard Schilling, Managing Director of Almdudler
UN Environment: www.unep.org http://worldenvironmentday.global
""Mountains of rubbish from urban sprawls, mining and tourism are spoiling fragile mountain environments around the world. In the Mt. Everest region alone, some 140,000 kilograms of trash have been dumped, and the area is under pressure from growing numbers of visitors. World Environment Day and its celebrations in Austria should remind us all of the beauty of our mountain landscapes and the need to keep them clean. We have to step up and take action to keep them clean. It's investment in our own health and well-being,” says Erik Solheim, Head of UN Environment.
