The local broadsheet Philippine Star reported recently that a cryptocurrency firm called CypherOdin offers to conduct a partnership project with the Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission (PRRC) to revive the Pasig River.
The company persuades the Commission to allow them to employ blockchain technology to save the said river. It plans to install Internet of Things (IoT) devices along the river to monitor its activities. By employing this technology, the movement of waste and its sources will be better monitored. IoT will provide interconnection among multiple devices which can send and receive information. Microchips can be embedded in these devices that can transmit valuable data such as the flow of waste, the level of tide, and the season when waste is likely to appear. With this information, a more efficient clean-up campaign may be carried out by focusing efforts in particular areas at certain times along the river.
CEO Mariano Villafuerte stated,
“We will collect the data we gather from these IoT devices and process them so we will have comprehensive information on where plastics and garbage are coming from, how they are moving, among others. This would allow us to analyse and come up with recommendations on how to best clean up the river of this debris.”
The proposal also entails a system of rewards to encourage participation from the inhabitants in the surroundings nearby. The firm plans to award cryptocurrency in exchange for garbage collected by the people. With this, the firm hopes to appeal to more individuals since it may result in an additional source of income.
In a study released last June of last year, Pasig River was declared to be one of the top polluting rivers in the world. The river dumps 63,700 tons of plastic waste into the ocean yearly, polluting the water and damaging its ecosystem. What once was the most important river in the Metro is now biologically dead and continues to pollute other neighboring bodies of water. There has been a lot of effort poured into saving Pasig River and bringing it back to its former glory over the past decade. All of the clean-up drives and information campaign were unsuccessful attempts to ultimately address the issue. Alongside the river lie industrial factories, residential households, commercial establishments that continuously pollute the river. The company sees it fitting to handle this crisis with the employment of the technology.
As of writing, the PRRC has not yet confirmed whether the proposition will push through.
