In the recent years Mt.Kenya has really shown the effects of littering on the mountain by careless climbers. Climbers should take the environment, natural wildlife and the natural forests into consideration. Mountaineering is just not about climbing, a dedicated climber should also think about his/her actions and the impact they will have on the environment.
Littering has become a problem at the huts, especially Austrian Hut. Please do carry all your litter down. Leave the mountain as it was before or help the environment by gathering other peoples litter and bringing it down. Any efforts to clean the mountain will be much appreciated.
Littering has also upset the natural ecosystem and the wildlife. The once thriving Rock Hyrax at Mackinders Camp are now no longer thriving and are often seen in small families rather than the herds which were present years back. The litter and basically human interference on their natural life have greatly affected them. Though it has been mentioned in the Park Gate entrance ticket DO NOT FEED THE ANIMALS visitors do have the tendency to throw bits of food. To many it is amazement and others think they are helping them. Believe me you are doing more harm than good and gradually wearing down the Hyrax’s hunting and gathering skills thus making them dependent on humans for food.
In the recent years there have been various attempts to clean up the mountain. At present there is much concern about the environment and groups like NOLS and UNEP are involved in the conservation of this beautiful mountain and its environs. There have been various clean up missions on the mountain which attempt to bring all the garbage on the mountain down. Clean up missions have now become common events almost annual as the littering problem is alarming and usually frequent climbers participate in them as they are more familiar with the problem and it is them who have to climb frequently.
At the time of publishing the most recent clean up was the Mt.Kenya Clean Up Mission 1998. The events of the clean up are listed in the report and some interviews of the participants and their personal views. Cleaning the mountain has and will always be an important and difficult task. I would personally like to thank the participants on a job very well done.
PLEASE DO BRING ALL YOUR LITTER DOWN AND IF IT IS NOT ASKING TOO MUCH FORAGE AND BRING THE OTHER LITTER ON THE MOUNTAIN AS WELL. THE ENVIRONMENT IS SOMETHING FRAGILE AND NEEDS LOOKING AFTER SO DO YOUR PART FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND TOGETHER WE CAN ALL MAKE A CHANGE. REMEMBER EVERY LITTLE BIT HELPS.