Scientists believe that human urine is responsible for a huge amount of Mount Everest’s glacier melting away, with over 150 tonnes of ice being lost in a single season.
According to research in the Regional Environmental Change journal on the human impact on the Khumbu Glacier, where Everest Base Camp sits on the Nepalese side of the mountain, those staying at high altitude need to drink heavily to combat dehydration.
Climbers and guides are estimated to collectively produce more than 6,000 litres of urine each day, and unlike other human waste, which is collected and transported away, much of that liquid waste is discharged directly onto the glacier.
Researchers calculated how much thermal energy it transfers to the surrounding ice and found that urine alone could account for 154 tonnes of melting.
Scientists blame urine, gas, and petrol for melting Everest glacier
It sounds like a lot, but this is only one small part of the camp’s considerably larger heat problem.
Around 1,600 tents operated there over 50 days during the 2023 spring climbing season. Keeping the temporary settlement running required 824 canisters of liquefied petroleum gas, 18,935 litres of kerosene, and 5,130 litres of petrol.
PexelsCombined with the heat transferred by urine, researchers estimated human activity generated enough energy to potentially melt 2,492 tonnes of ice and snow during the season.
This may not even paint the full picture, as the calculation left out sources of warmth, including climbers’ body heat, helicopters, and yaks used to transport items.
Researchers stressed that climate change remains the primary cause of Everest’s glacier slowly melting away, rather than mountaineers relieving themselves on it. Their findings instead highlight an additional problematic source of heat on a glacier that is already vulnerable.
This isn’t the first time recently that urine has caused issues. The “roommate from hell” was keeping jars of it in an apartment, while a man who fell into a campsite toilet had to be ‘decontaminated’ afterwards.
I’m Abhishek Sharma, an author at TigerJek.com. I enjoy exploring games, testing different strategies, and turning what I learn into clear, useful guides. My goal is to help players understand the game better and improve without the usual confusion.
