Kathmandu, May 25: As part of their programmes to generate awareness on environmental pollution in the Himalayas, members of the fifth annual ATE Clean-up Trek 2000 recently collected more than 2500 liters (40 bags) of waste from the Khumbu region.

Apart from collecting wastes like plastics, cans, glass and batteries, members of the ATE team helped local people to spread awareness about keeping the environment clean and healthy by using their local resources, informed Bharat Basnet managing director of the Explore Nepal P. Ltd. at a press meet here recently. He said that the clean up campaign was basically launched to help reduce the pollution in the pristine mountains in Nepal.

Christopher Sachsenmaier one of the members of the team stressed the need of active involvement of local people in keeping the environment clean. Besides, trekking agencies should be held strictly responsible for educating their crews and customers about environmental issues and monitoring their behaviour during the trip, said Sachsemainer adding ‘the role media is vital to generate awareness in this regard.’

According to the Explore Nepal, members of ATE Clean up Trek 2000 started their two week campaign on May 7 in the Khumbu region mainly from Lukla to Gokyo and collected rubbish along the way. ‘It was our goal to raise awareness of the problem of environmental pollution,’ says an open statement of the members of the clean up team to His Majesty’s the Government of Nepal. The campaign was launched at the joint initiation of Nepal Region Germany and the Explorer Nepal. Around 52 people from different countries were involved in the campaign the members of the team include Florian Dittrich, a landscper from Germany, Beat Franceschini, Corsin Franceschini both from Switzerland, Krishna G.C. a tour leader from Nepal, Helga Klewer a nurse from Germany, Oliver Koechert a civil servant, Wolfgan Koerner, sales manager, Thomas Prinzter a journalist, Kathrin Schulze a nurse from Germany and Gertraud Stadler a sales manager from Austria.