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Cleaning up for Mandela Day
During Mandela Month 2015, The Glass Recycling Company (TGRC) decided to attract the attention of pedestrians and motorists entering the busy hub of Sandton, and in doing so, draw their attention to the litter and excess waste that lines so many of our streets.
The team from TGRC along with volunteers from local businesses spent a minimum of 67 minutes cleaning up the littered roadsides and intersections approaching the heart of Sandton. TGRC also wanted to show the importance of South Africans cleaning and disposing their waste in the best possible manner.
Recycling glass
Members of The Glass Recycling Company cleaning up.
"Beyond cleaning up, it is imperative that all South Africans begin recycling. By recycling your glass and other packaging you are ensuring that your packaging waste never pollutes our country. In addition, the more we recycle and reuse packaging, less ends up in landfill sites," explained TGRC CEO, Shabeer Jhetam.
TGRC believes that there needs to be a strong emphasis on sustainable actions and behaviours, not merely on Mandela Day.
"TGRC appreciates that Mandela Day provides an opportunity to express our commitment to this notable day, in recognition of our gratitude for our beloved South African leader's impact on our country," continues Jhetam.
"However, we need to adopt daily positive behaviours. By recycling each glass bottle or jar you use, you are ensuring we preserve our natural resources and contribute to energy saving. In addition, glass recycling plays a valuable role in formal and informal job creation."
Tangible actions
Staff members of the Raddison Blu Gautrain Hotel assisting in the clean-up.
TGRC along with their shareholders, who consist of many of the notable brands who package their beverage and foods in glass, believe that we can all make a difference through small tangible actions, such as separating our waste for recycling.
The glass recycling rate in South Africa is currently 40.9% - every new glass bottle and jar manufactured in our country contains over 40% recycled glass. Glass has the highest recycled content of all packaging in the country. Over one billion glass bottles and jars were recycled in the past year alone; as a result during this period in excess of 225,000 tons of carbon emissions were reduced by recycling glass.
