Implementing a Blockchain, Smart Contract, and NFT Framework for Waste Management Systems in Emerging Economies: An Investigation in Vietnam

The management and disposal of various types of waste (including industrial, domestic, and medical waste) are worldwide issues, which are particularly critical in developing nations such as Vietnam. Given the extensive population and inadequate waste treatment facilities, addressing this challenge is of utmost importance. Predominantly, the majority of such waste is not processed for composting but is instead subjected to elimination, thereby posing severe threats to public health and environmental safety. Furthermore, insufficient standards in existing waste treatment plants contribute to the rising volume of environmental waste. Emphasizing the process of waste recycling instead of total elimination is an alternate strategy that needs to be considered seriously. However, the implementation of waste segregation in Vietnam is still not sufficiently prioritized by individuals or organizations. This study presents a unique model for waste segregation and treatment, leveraging the capacities of blockchain technology and smart contracts. We also scrutinize the adherence or non-compliance to waste segregation mandates as a mechanism to incentivize or penalize individuals and organizations, respectively. To address this, we employ Non-Fungible Token (NFT) technology for the storage of compliance proofs and associated metadata. The paper’s primary contributions can be delineated into four components: i) presentation of a waste segregation and treatment model in Vietnam, utilizing Blockchain technology and Smart Contracts; ii) application of NFTs for storage of compliance-related content and its metadata; iii) offering a proof-of-concept implementation rooted in the Ethereum platform; and iv) executing the proposed model on four EVM and ERC721 compliant platforms, namely BNB Smart Chain, Fantom, Polygon, and Celo, to identify the most suitable platform for our proposition.

@article{G2023,
  title     = {Implementing a Blockchain, Smart Contract, and NFT Framework for Waste Management Systems in Emerging Economies: An Investigation in Vietnam},
  journal   = {International Journal of Advanced Computer Science and Applications},
  volume    = {14},
  number    = {8},
  year      = {2023},
  publisher = {The Science and Information Organization},
  author    = {Khiem H. G and Khanh H. V and Huong H. L and Quy T. L and Phuc T. N. and Ngan N. T. K. and Triet M. N. and Bang L. K. and Trong D. P. N. and Hieu M. D. and Bao Q. T. and Khoa D. T.},
  doi       = {10.14569/IJACSA.2023.01408107},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.14569/IJACSA.2023.01408107}
}