84A 2025-2026

Phoenix Nest / Purity Pipeline /
Protecting homes, one filter at a time

Team #84a2526

On a mission to preventing clogging of urban drainage systems to prevent flooding.

“Sometimes it takes a natural disaster to reveal a social disaster" - Jim Wallis.

Did you know?

A human development barrier Vietnam has is the economic barrier, where the sewer systems are outdated and are vulnerable to trapping waste in the sewage systems, leading to flooding. This problem not only affects citizens in the capital but also affects citizens in poverty, as floods lead to citizens losing assets, as well as making them lose electricity, but also damaging the water systems. This is why the target we chose to focus on is SDG 11, target 11.9:implement policies for inclusion, resource efficiency and disaster risk reduction.

Some main problems affecting this are trash getting through drains and clogging the sewer and drainage systems, leading to significant floods when there is lots of rain some data that shows the amount of trash that lands in drainage systems are that 55% and 71% of waste in Vietnam ends up in unsanitary landfills or via open dumping, leading to significant amounts entering drainage systems. People are also afraid of animals like disgusting sewer rats crawling through the drains, leading to contaminated water. One study showed that an increase of 1 meter in distance from the nearest sewer was associated with a 3% decrease in the risk of rodent infestation, showing that if we find a solution to rat infestation, it could lead to healthier and less contaminated water. This problem is important because it impacts citizens both economically and through health.

While there have been attempts to keep trash and animals out of drainage systems through filters, they are not very environmentally friendly, as they are made out of plastic, and they are not maintained adequately. Only 12.5% of municipal wastewater is treated nationwide, showing a lack of effective filtration at a systemic level. This is why our Phoenix nest group has come up with a solution to combat these two problems by making aesthetic ceramic filters that keep out both trash and animals and can be used by citizens on their properties’ drains.