Environment Volunteers collect 250 kilograms of garbage on Engadin glacier

90 volunteers collected 250 kilograms of garbage on the Pers and Morteratsch glaciers in the Upper Engadin on Wednesday during the Bernina Glaciers Clean-Up Day. They found cigarette butts and plastic waste, as well as lost sports equipment such as crampons, clothing and even skis.

The waste will now be disposed of properly, those responsible wrote in a press release on Thursday. However, well-preserved relics are given a second life. An Engadin wood sculptor is using some of the garbage to create works of art that will be auctioned off next spring to benefit glacier conservation projects. Last year, around 9,000 francs were raised in this way.

However, the clean-up campaign on the popular glacier route is not just about ridding nature of garbage. It is also about raising awareness of climate change and the water balance. In the last two years, it has been possible to reduce waste and at the same time find new volunteers to lend a hand each summer. The fact that the same amount of garbage was found this year as last year shows that it still makes sense to clean up the glaciers.