Mount Everest climbers must take their poo back to base camp

Climbers on Mount Everest will now have to clear up their own poo and take it back to base camp to be disposed of, authorities announced.

The Nepalese municipality of Pasang Lhamu, which covers most of the region around Everest, the world's tallest peak, has introduced the rule as part of measures aiming to improve the environment, the BBC reports.

"Our mountains have begun to stink," Mingma Sherpa, chairman of the municipality, said.

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"We are getting complaints that human stools are visible on rocks and some climbers are falling sick. This is not acceptable and erodes our image."

Vast amounts of excrement have built up on Mount Everest in recent years because the extreme cold stops it from fully degrading.

Now climbers scaling Mount Everest and nearby Mount Lhotse will be required to buy so-called "poo bags" at base camp, which will be checked upon their return.

For decades, climbers attempting the treacherous ascent have dug a hole in the snow when they need to defecate.

But further up the mountain, parts have less snow so they are forced to go to the toilet in the open.

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Few people bring their excrement back in biodegradable bags during Mount Everest expeditions which can take weeks.

Large amounts of rubbish left by climbers on the famous mountain, which has a peak of 8850 metres, have built up over the past decades.

The non-government organisation Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee estimated there are three tonnes of between camp one at the bottom of Everest and camp four, near the summit.