Making old glass new again

SHABEER Jhetam is a passionate advocate of recycling. The CEO of The Glass Recycling Company talks to Margaret Harris about reducing our carbon footprint and creating jobs

 

What does your job involve? Take me through your typical work day, if such a thing exists?

 

There isn’t often a typical work day, but I do spend a great deal of time meeting various people and organisations to increase the recycling and reuse of glass.

 

Whether it is meeting our shareholders and the board, who are high-level corporate executives committed to preventing glass from going to landfill; educating pupils at schools; or talking to glass collectors, I spend a great deal of time discussing the best ways of increasing the recovery and reuse of glass.

 

I regularly visit entrepreneurial buy-back centres, particularly in townships, to meet the people on the ground who buy glass from collectors. With The Glass Recycling Company, that provides an income for collectors. I work with the government to encourage the separation of recyclables from regular waste. Lobbying with all tiers of government is also a large part of the job.

 

How did you end up in this position?

 

After studying, I was appointed as a management trainee at Iscor.

 

Through my 13-year career with the iron and steel giant I held numerous management positions.

 

In 2002, an opportunity arose for me to enter the recycling sector and I spent four years at Collect-a-Can. In 2006, I made a career move within the recycling industry by taking on the responsibility of driving and heading The Glass Recycling Company with glass manufacturers, fillers and recyclers.

 

My focus is to revolutionise glass recycling in South Africa and increase recycling rates by changing South African attitudes to recycling. I am also the vice-chairman of the National Recycling Forum and have previously held the position of treasurer.

 

What would people find most surprising about your job?

 

Many people assume the role of CEO to be somewhat glamorous, but there is more to the role than its strategic functions. It is very hands-on. It is a proactive role, involved in every step of the recycling process.

 

You need to be comfortable talking to CEOs of blue-chip companies as well as gaining market intelligence from valuable collectors at grass-roots level. One also needs to have an understanding of and empathy for each person involved in the recycling process.

 

Why is glass recycling important?

 

Unemployment is a huge problem in South Africa, and job creation is crucial for our country. Glass recycling creates an income for tens of thousands of South Africans. By recycling glass we are also reducing South Africa’s carbon footprint by saving huge amounts of energy and conserving scarce landfill space.

 

Glass seems to be in a class of its own in terms of recycling. Why is this?

 

Glass is natural and pure and is infinitely recyclable. This is unique, especially when combined with the fact that recycling does not affect the quality of the glass produced.

 

Every glass container in South Africa contains 40% recycled glass.

 

To recycle the glass, it is crushed into a smaller pieces known as cullet and this is heated at a much lower temperature with a small quantity of silica sand, soda ash and limestone to create new pure glass.

 

All glass recycled in South Africa is used to manufacture new glass containers.

 

How can each of us do more in terms of recycling?

 

Particularly during this month, which is glass recycling month, please do all you can to establish a recycling programme at your school or office.

 

Petition your local shopping centre, service station or your complex to create a recycling station.

 

You can get in touch with The Glass Recycling Company to request a glass bank for your area. Then separate your glass and take it to your local glass bank or refuse site or employ a collection company to collect your recyclables from your home or office.

 

What qualifications do you have and how do they help you to do your job?

 

I studied a BCom degree with honours at the University of Natal and I completed a postgraduate degree in logistics at the University of Pretoria, while working. The commerce degree gave me a thorough understanding of all aspects of running a business, from finance to marketing and human resources. The additional logistics studies assisted me with managing the day-to-day operational aspects of waste management.

 

What did you want to be when you were a child?

 

I wanted to be a doctor when I was younger, but I have found another way of assisting people and now feel business is a more exciting path for me.

 

How well does South Africa do compared with other countries in terms of recycling?

 

South Africa’s recycling rate, at 40.1%, is comparable to developing nations such as Brazil, which has a 47% recycling rate. In just six years South Africa has more than doubled its glass recycling rate. More than a billion glass containers were recovered for recycling during the past year. This equates to about 2.8million bottles recovered for recycling a day. Without legislation to enforce recycling, however, we do fall behind countries in Western Europe, where legislation was implemented many years ago.

What is the best career advice you have ever been given?

 

My father pushed me to study and work hard to reach my goals. I have taken his advice and believe that through discipline and hard work, as well as a great deal of integrity, you can achieve your goals.