Garbage clear out in Antarctica

Japanese researchers in Antarctica are getting serious about cleaning up the half-century's worth of garbage piled up at their base.

Building materials, cast-off snow vehicles and fuel drums have collected at the research base since the first expedition was launched in 1956.

By 1998, the garbage weighed about 500 tonnes and research teams began chipping away at the pile to clear it.

Now, those efforts are being accelerated. Japan's Science Ministry hopes to send the remaining 337 tonnes of garbage home within four years.