TGRC celebrates a successful recycling month

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Glass Recycling Month, as well as Clean-up and Recycle Week, a Clean-Up SA initiative, drew the attention of communities across the country to the social, economic and environmental benefits of recycling and called upon all citizens to play their part in building a sustainable future for our nation.

"This year, Glass Recycling Month served to highlight the importance of selecting and recycling glass packaging, but it is also important to note that we are hard at work at all times to ensure glass continues to be diverted from landfills at an increasing rate. In this way we protect the environment, reduce our carbon footprint as a country and conserve much needed energy for our national electricity grid," explains The Glass Recycling Company (TGRC) chief executive officer, Shabeer Jhetam.

Less emissions

"Indeed, as a nation we consume three million tons of glass packaging annually but only need to produce one million tons as a direct result of not only our advanced returnable system, but also our country's intensive recycling efforts. This means that far less carbon and greenhouse emissions are created in the production of our country's glass requirements, than would be necessary were we to create all our glass bottles and jars from scratch.

"South Africa is one of 20 countries with the highest carbon dioxide emissions per capita, and so it is imperative that we all play our part by stepping up our recycling efforts. Conserving energy is an efficient way to lower our carbon footprint. The recycling of only one glass container per week, by way of example, has the power to light a compact florescent bulb for seven hours and eight minutes; operate a computer for 20 minutes; and switch on a TV for 13 minutes," Jhetam says.

Preserving the future

"With over a billion bottles being recycled in the past year, and a recycling rate of 40.9% we can certainly say that South Africans from all walks of life are ensuring that glass is being diverted from our landfills at an increasingly rapid rate. With that said, there is still more that we as responsible citizens can do to the preserve the future of our country and our planet," he adds.

Of all the glass packaging used in South Africa annually, 80% is prevented from entering landfills. This is made possible through the combined efforts of recycling and the use of returnable/refillable bottles. As a result, glass is the packaging type that is most diverted from landfills.