WE WANT TO MAKE EVERY CITIZEN WHO DOES NOT SELECT THE WASTE FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE
For certain, each one of us has at least once seen the chalkboards placed in front of coffee bars, restaurants, shops throughout Macedonia which remind us that recycling is our obligation, whereby we help ourselves, and the planet Earth. At those moments, you have come across the name of “Pakomak”, the Macedonian synonym of recycling and healthy environment. It is a non-profit company that manages the packaging waste with the main goal to preserve the environment and ensure healthier life. In fact, Pivara Skopje stands behind the idea for establishment of “Pakomak”.
We met the front man of “Pakomak”, Filip Ivanovski, for a beer in the coffee bar “Krug” and talked to him about the goals, actions, associates and ideals of “Pakomak”, as well as, about the ecological awareness of Macedonians.
What is “Pakomak” and what is its role in the society?
“Pakomak” is a non-profit company established by 11 Macedonian big companies, with the main aim to organize a system for selection and recycling of packaging waste from the products of these companies, as well as, all others that want to become members of the “Pakomak” system. According to the Law on Packaging Waste, “Pakomak” is a collective handler of packaging waste. To date, more than 76 companies in the country entrusted us the management of their packaging waste. Around 105,000 tonnes of waste from different packaging is generated annually in Macedonia, and only our member-companies release over 42,000 tonnes of packaging waste on the market annually and finance our system for collection of that packaging waste. Last year, we collected over 11,000 tonnes of packaging waste, mostly plastic, paper and glass, and in 2015 we plan to collect and recycle over 15,000 tonnes of packaging waste or over 35% of what members-companies of “Pakomak” generate as waste. We plan to reach more than 60% until 2020. Therefore, instead of having bottles ending up at the landfill, “Pakomak” will collect 60 out of 100 emptied bottles of a certain product through its system, and would take them for recycling. Together with the municipalities, our role is to raise the awareness of the population about the need for selection and recycling of waste, as well as, to place the containers for waste selection, so that the citizens can have the real possibility to do the selection and then organize regular collection and treatment of the selected waste.
Day after day, it becomes clearer that the environment is endangered. What is the importance of recycling and to what extent do we practice it in our country?
We can and we must do more about recycling. Inadequate waste management may have long-lasting consequences on the health of whole nations. I am not only referring to the packaging waste, but also to all other fractions which are even more dangerous (batteries, electronic waste, waste oil, tires, toxic and medical waste, etc.) Most of us are not aware that inadequately treated waste would sooner or later return to the nutrition chain and would softly destroy us.
The selection of packaging waste and its recycling primarily saves the natural resources and energy. In the messages that we communicate to the citizens, we try to emphasize the benefits of recycling: a tonne of selected and recycled paper is equal to saving 17 trees of average size, as well as, 10 cubic meters of water. A tonne of selected and recycled PET packaging saves 900 liters oil, and there are also significant savings of energy because of reduced processing. Macedonia has capacity for processing of plastic waste, such as PET bottles, nylon and hard plastic.
How would you assess the level of environmental awareness in Macedonia? What position would we take on the scale of environmental awareness in comparison to others?
Every year, “Pakomak” is conducting a research about the public awareness of waste selection and we came to a conclusion that it is increasing year after year. However, we are lagging behind the countries that initiated this process 20 years ago, where waste selection is an obligation and a daily habit to any normal citizen.
Our goal is to bring this level of environmental awareness closer to our citizens and make waste selection a citizen obligation. Simply, we want each and every citizen who does not select waste to feel uncomfortable or “feel uneasy” (due to the environmental values s/he developed). In the past three years, we have been focused on environmental education for children in primary schools because they have still not developed their habits and attitudes and they are most open to accept waste selection as a citizen obligation.
What should big companies know about the packaging of their products and how can they contribute to “greener” environment?
Law on Management of Packaging and Packaging Waste is in force since 1 January 2011 and we believe that all companies are familiar with their obligation to finance a system for selection and recycling of the packaging waste of their products. Most economical option for the companies is to become members of a company which is a collective handler, such as “Pakomak”. The easiest way to make their environmental contribution is to pay the respective charge per tonne of generated waste to “Pakomak” or companies dealing with the same activity. Nevertheless, the insufficient collected funds are the main obstacle for rapid spreading of the communal infrastructure for packaging waste selection and bigger campaigns for raising the public awareness.
To what extent do domestic manufacturers use the services of companies like yours?
Around 1,100 companies in Macedonia have packaging waste management with some collective handler. Among them, over 780 companies use the system of “Pakomak” and perceive the work of our company as very serious and professional. We cooperate with over 20 municipalities throughout the country and we try to use every possible way to bring things forward. Unfortunately, the number of companies which are not members of any waste management system is quite large, and they still release more than 40% of the total generated packaging waste. These companies do not invest a single Macedonian denar for selection and recycling of their own packaging waste. We believe that by creating responsible and environmentally aware citizens, we shall be able to influence the managers of those companies to join us or other collective handlers of packaging waste. Yet, this is also the task of the institutions in charge of the implementation of the Law on Packaging Waste and hope that in the following period the number of those companies will be below 8%, like in the other European countries.
How can citizens get easily informed about the recycling process and conservation of the environment and what kind of work is undertaken for such informative events in our country?
“Pakomak” made efforts to use many communication channels to inform the citizens about the necessity of waste selection and recycling. We use announcements in the printed media, radio messages; via direct post along with the utility bills, distribution of flyers in the mailboxes etc… Also, we attend many events and organize different promotional activities in the supermarket chains, actions for collection of packaging waste (paper and glass), we organize educational sessions in the schools and kindergartens and place containers for waste selection, and we brand the coffee bars in Skopje with Eco-messages and collect their glass packaging. Traditionally, every year in June we organize the festival “Sound of Green” and the admission fee is three empty plastic bottles. In November, we organize a competition “Trash for Art” when we receive more than 200 works made of packaging waste by individuals and schools. With different events and activities we try to reach out to every segment of the population because waste selection should become a habit of every citizen in Macedonia. Soon, we shall start the free-of-charge broadcasting of three educational TV spots on several national and local television stations. We are negotiating about free broadcasting on several radios and at the same time we negotiate about billboards, so this may become a decent public awareness campaign. I point out that the broadcasting will be free of charge because we dispose of a modest budget, and media have understanding about the non-profit character of our activities which are beneficial for the society. Parallel to the campaign, we shall place the new containers for waste selection together with the City of Skopje and “Komunalna Higiena Skopje,” which shall create new possibilities for the citizens to select their waste at home.
What is the role of Pivara Skopje in this segment and in what manner did it contribute?
Pivara Skopje is the founder of “Pakomak” and the main initiator for its establishment. When I was appointed a director, the basic operational framework was already defined by an Austrian consultant who worked for The Coca-Cola Company. Pivara Skopje is among our 5 biggest clients and has its own representative in the Supervisory board of “Pakomak”. We always get support for our work and look for ways to implement joint projects. In fact, “Pakomak” works under the model of Austria which has the highest rate of recycling of packaging waste in EU. Although our mindset and ecological habits differ from the Austrian, I still believe we are on the right track to keep pace with the contemporary trends of waste management. Persistence and creativity are required, and the unselfish efforts by the whole team of “Pakomak” must produce positive results!
