Digital volunteering: Romanians can report illegal trash dumping via new app

Romanians who encounter a pile of illegally dumped trash near their homes, on their way to work, or just on the street, can now report it to the relevant authorities viaa new applaunched by Let’s Do It Romania organization. The mobile app is available for free in Google Play, and it will soon be made available in App Store as well. After the volunteer has reported the illegal trash, the app instantly generates a request for clean-up to the responsible authorities. The user will get updates on the action’s status until the area is cleaned up, according to a statement of Let’s Do It Romania. The project also includes an online platform where each notification includes the GPS coordinates of the area and relevant details about the trash piles. The project was developed in partnership with the Romanian Ministry of Environment and local software developer Qualitance. “Reporting illegal trash is just the first stage of the app’s development. We are already in talks to introduce the possibility to report illegal logging, and air and water pollution,” said Enviroment Minister Gratiela Gavrilescu. The project was started with money obtained through a crowdfunding launched by Let’s Do It Romania in May this year. Over 50,000 volunteers join cleanup campaign “Let’s Do It Romania! “ Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com