Emily Chan
If global greenhouse gas emissions are not reduced, much of the world will see snow-free winters by 2100, as per Andrew Schwartz, an atmospheric scientist from the Central Sierra Snow Laboratory at the University of California Berkeley.
For the majority of the year, Mount Fuji is usually dressed in white until the summer. That is when the mountain draws more than 220,000 hikers to its slopes.
It’s not just the lack of snow that is a cause of concern for Japanese officials. The increased number of tourists arriving in the country to climb the mountain is worrisome as well.
More people began to trickle in after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. This year, Japan introduced a charge of 2,000 Japanese yen, which equates to about $13, for hikers wanting to trek the most popular route on the mountain.
In addition, the visitor cap was set to 4,000 people per day. The new regulations were established in an effort to curb the crowds during the hiking season. Hikers have also littered and gone onto the trails without proper gear, leading to injuries.
“Over-tourism—and all the subsequent consequences like rubbish, rising CO2 emissions, and reckless hikers—is the biggest problem facing Mount Fuji,” said Masatake Izumi, a government official in Yamanashi Prefecture. “Fuji-san is screaming out in pain.”
