Recently, some 65 ways of using blockchain technology in environmental protection initiatives were presented in a study conducted by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in conjunction with PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment. It addresses the various applications of this technology to address environmental challenges, such as climate change, loss of biodiversity or water scarcity.
The document entitled “Building Block(chain)s for a Better Planet,” published recently, indicates that the eco-friendly applications that blockchain technology covers are grouped around issues such as enabling the transition to cleaner and more efficient decentralized systems, peer-to-peer marketing of resources and permits, transparency, supply chain management, and new financing models for environmental initiatives, among others.
In the announcement of the publication of the study, PwC refers, in general, to the benefits of blockchain technology.
Blockchain technology to be used in environmental protection, according to a World Economic Forum (WEF) report
“The blockchain technology is an emerging foundational technology, which allows the transfer of a range of assets between parties, safely and cheaply, without third-party intermediation. As blockchain applications and platforms such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) become better known, there is a growing enthusiasm for the blockchain opportunity for the Earth. If used adductively, blockchain has significant potential to enable a shift towards decentralized, cleaner, more resource-conserving solutions, leading to the liberation of natural capital and the empowerment of communities,” stated PriceWaterhouseCoopers representatives.
On the other hand, this study identifies proposals enabled by blockchain technology qualified as “modifying the rules of the game” or disruptive, “that can provide transformation solutions to environmental challenges,” according to the report. These include decentralized and sustainable resource management, which would reduce information asymmetry among ecosystem participants.
As for the 65 application proposals mentioned, centered on blockchain technology, only those areas within six categories, such as climate change, healthy oceans or biodiversity, are said that such applications would address. However, there is no single detailed example provided on the type of blockchain used, whether a public blockchain will be used or a private blockchain.