A representative of the mGreen Social Services Joint Stock Company introduces its mobile app in waste sorting, collection management, and recycling waste treatment at the workshop. (Photo: VNA) The workshop was organised by the city’s Centre for Information and Statisticsfor Science and Technology (CESTI) to introduce a solution for smart cities inwaste separation, collection management, and recycling called mGreen.
A recent report by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources found thaturban areas dump about 32,000 tonnes of solid waste per day and about 85.5% ofit is collected, while rural areas discharge 14,200 tonnes daily and 45-55% ofit is collected.
The waste is mainly treated by landfilling (63%), burning (14%) and recycling(10%), while the rest is used for producing organic fertilisers.
The collected waste that is buried or burnt can cause serious environmentalpollution. Meanwhile, around the world, between 60-90% of waste is recycled.
Experts repeatedly mentioned the importance of sorting waste at source, as50-70% of waste contains compounds which can be recycled to create new sourcesof energy. Waste classification at source would also help to reduce wastetreatment costs.
The application of technological solutions in waste classification andcollection is being deployed. One such digital solution is mGreen, developed bymGreen Social Services Joint Stock Company, which is one of the leadingtechnology solutions in waste sorting, collection management, and recyclingwaste treatment through Evoucher on the Mobile Loyalty Coalition Platform.
Tran Thi Thoa, director of the company, said mGreen is a mobile app thateducates residents to separate waste at source and encourages them to collectrecyclables to earn points and redeem gifts, helping collectors collect wasteconveniently.
The system connects residents with collectors and merchants at shops andstores.
It provides three mobile phone applications, including mGreen for sorting wasteat source for residents; mGreen Collector which receives collection callrequests for recycling collectors; and mPoint Shop for stores associated withmGreen to compare Promo codes, accumulate points, and redeem gifts of mGreencard holders.
The mGreen Loyalty Coalition Platform also provides a system for merchantpromotions, where points can be exchanged by mGreen users for customer careprogrammes.
The company has been cooperating with local authorities, manufacturers, wastecollection services, and recycling companies to implement waste separation andcollection of recycling in some areas of Hanoi, HCM City, and the provinces of BaRia-Vung Tau, Quang Ninh and Bac Ninh.
From 2018 to 2020, mGreen was implemented in 10 provinces in the country, with50 launch events and ‘Greendays’ where people redeem recycled waste in exchangefor points and gifts via the mGreen app.
It created 100 recycling collector jobs and 120 environment student ambassadorsto promote mGreen and spread awareness about waste sorting. It also contributedto the collection of 200 tonnes of recycling waste.
According to the ministry, about 30,000 tonnes of generated waste per day are recyclablewaste. This waste is valued at approximately 200 million USD per year.
mGreen expects to capture 5% of this market, which is around 10 million USD.
It has achieved National and International awards such as ‘Technology to Copewith Climate Change’ from the World Bank, the Ministry of Science andTechnology and the Vietnam Women’s Union; the Asia-Pacific Innovation SocialAward 2019; and the Top 3 Hanoi Smart City and Innovation Solution.
Nguyen Thi from the ministry’s Legal Department said the ministry is building aset of technical guidelines on waste classification at source.
It needs to provide a legal framework on waste classification at source, andissue regulations on prices of collection services, transportation andtreatment of domestic solid waste.
In addition, mobilising households, individuals and localities to applytechnology, and a digital transformation in the management and implementationof waste classification at source are also needed./.
VNA
