Philippines Turns to Blockchain, Crypto for River Rehab

The Philippines is pinning its hopes on blockchain and cryptocurrency to rehabilitate its bodies of waters.

The Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission (PRRC), the agency tasked with cleaning up the 27-kilometer long Pasig River, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) last week with local blockchain company Cypher Odin as part of a plan to restore to health what is now a highly polluted river.

“There are so many opportunities and so many things we could do to help clean up the river. We can make Pasig like the River Thames where nightlife is vibrant or where people can enjoy water adventures like river dining and cruises. There are so many things that can be done, the possibilities are endless,” said Mariano Villafuerte IV, CEO of Cypher Odin.

From left to right:  Cypher Odin Director for Environmental Innovations Alfredo Lorenzo Roa, Cypher Odin CEO Mariano Jose Diaz Villafuerte IV, PRRC Director Jose Antonio E. Goitia, and Deputy Executive Director for Operations Anshari C. Lomodag Jr.

PRRC executive director Jose Antonio Goitia said the cooperation with Cypher Odin reinforces his agency’s commitment to promoting public-private-partnership initiatives for rehabilitating and protecting Metro Manila’s waterways.

The deal will see PRRC and Cypher Odin cooperate by linking their networks and meeting regularly to identify problem areas and propose solutions.

Cypher Odin will deploy modern Internet of Things (IoT) and Internet of Underwater Things (IoUT) devices to monitor the water quality of Pasig River, tide levels, and other relevant data points. The access to information via a trusted, peer-to-peer, inter-agency platform is a significant use case for blockchain and will provide more accountability, transparency, and consistency for all stakeholders, according to the partners.

In addition, Cypher Odin plans to launch a digital currency called BOTcoin, which would be used to reward communities and companies contributing to the clean-up. Villafuerte commented:

“This initiative will be funded by cryptocurrency. Through BOTcoin, we plan on following a Smart City approach, which will create even smarter citizens. The Smart River Initiative will put the Philippines on the forefront of creating solutions and POC’s for Smart Islands and Smart Cities. This pilot program will be a framework for solutions to problems in waste management, afforestation, clean water, marine transport and don’t forget about retrieving lost remnants of our culture.”

Villafuerte is looking to create similar partnerships with the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) and relevant agencies within the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) so that all stakeholders can be involved in protecting the country’s bodies of water.

Villafuerte, whose company is offering its services to the government for free, added the raw data collected on Pasig River would be processed, analyzed and turned into information and handed to academia and the government to help them develop a more permanent solution to the pollution problems afflicting the river.