Interview with Yavuz Eroğlu, chairman of SEM plastic Board of TURMEPA Deniz Temiz Magazine and PAGEEV
80% OF THE WASTE IS TRANSPORTED FROM LAND TO LAND.
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SINCE IT IS THE MOST WIDELY USED PACKAGING IN THE WORLD, THE MATERIAL THAT ATTRACTS THE MOST ATTENTION IN ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION IS PLASTIC. PAGEV CHAIRMAN YAVUZ EROĞLU, “THERE IS A FRACTURE CREATED BY PLASTIC, BUT AS A WHOLE, KIRLIKLEKTEKI THE BIGGEST SHARE IS NOT IN PLASTIC,” HE ADDS: “THE WASTE BENEATH OUR SUBJECT DOES NOT CREATE VISUALNESS, THE MOST PLASTIC IS REMOVED BY THE PUBLIC AND INSTITUTIONS.” |
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Yavuz Eroğlu, Chairman of Turkish plastic industry research and Development Foundation and member of the Board of Directors of WASDE Free Oceans, operating under the roof of the European Union, talked about the plastic industry and its environmental impacts. Evaluating the reason of plastic being more prominent than other wastes as visual pollution, Eroğlu says that the highest share in the pollution is not plastic. Let's start by getting to know pagev better... Pagev was founded in 1989 as the Turkish Plastic Industry Research, Development and Education Foundation. We have around 700 active members and represent more than 88 percent of the value chain in Turkey. We Are The Unifying Power Of The Plastics Industry. In order to solve the problems of the sector, we are engaged in activities in and out of the country. Pagev operates as a professional non-governmental organization in a framework that covers not only the plastic sector but also the areas such as rubber, composite and side branches of the sector. In addition, an important part of our work is related to the environment. We work effectively in plastic, Environment and health triangle.
According to the report published by the International Maritime Organization, which operates within the United Nations, the amount of waste in the world's Seas is approximately 150 million tons. Each year about 8-10 million tons of waste is mixed into the sea. 70 percent of this waste sinks into the bottom of the sea, 15 percent hits the shore, and the remaining 15 percent floats over the sea. Among these, the reason that plastic comes to the fore is that plastic “knows swimming”. Because the wastes under the sea do not create any visual pollution, the plastic is most pronounced by the public and the institutions. There is a pollution created by plastics, but the largest share of the pollution as a whole is not owned by plastics. Ellen MacArthur founder's recent report also draws attention to plastic pollution.. That report is really important. The world's most important auditing companies Deloitte, McKinsey and Ernst and young jointly prepared this report for the European Union. There is a lot of detail, important information and an emergency response in this report. But after the report was published, only the plastic part of the headline was moved to the press. Don't get me wrong, I certainly don't flatter plastics here. The waste problem is serious. But there's more to that report than plastic. 80 percent of the sea waste is transported from land to sea. The general reason for the pollution on land is the bad “waste management system”of the states. In a study conducted by tüdav in the Black Sea, 53 percent of the landfill in the sea is not from Turkey. The water moves globally and carries the garbage. The countries that contribute the most to global mobility in the world are the developing countries and the undeveloped countries whose laws and infrastructures are inadequate. In China, only last year, the amount of waste dumped into the sea caused by improper waste management is 8 million tons.
Where is Turkey on this list? Turkey is not in a very bright place. Even in the Marmara Sea, we do not have a waste management system. Today, we still have more than 701 wild storage areas, and the vast majority of them are on the seashore. Of course, it is necessary not to expect everything from the state, but the “civilized system” we call waste management should provide state. Infrastructure can not establish citizens. |
Pagev, the unifying institution of the plastics industry, is at this point in the environmental sense?
Recycling of plastics is very important for the sector. This situation is very important for the sector to achieve a sustainability that is parallel to the environment and the economy. Recycling is not in conflict with the interests of companies. Because we are dependent on exports in the raw material of plastics, insufficient production in Turkey. One of the things we're working on right now is “zero waste”. Today, local governments bury a large portion of the waste. We are working hard to prevent plastic waste from being buried.
We have projects we offer to the Ministry of Environment and Urbanism. For the sectors to be sustainable, they need to be at peace with the community. Therefore, we do not do these works as a blessing. There are reasons why plastic is more preferred in society; quickly accessible, robust, longevity and cheap. If the environmental concerns of the business are resolved, it becomes continuous and profitable. To ensure all this, we set up our recycling business, Pagev. Pagchev is not-for-profit and is only trying to regulate the environmental dimension of the business and ensure its continuity. Last year, we worked with 51 municipalities to recycle 170 thousand tons of waste into production. Pagevc collected 10 million people'S waste and collected not only plastics, but also different wastes such as metal, glass and paper.
How do you collect waste, how does the process work?
The state requires the brands to re-enter a certain percentage of the packaging they put on the market. Under normal circumstances, companies should collect plastic on the market, separate it by type, then go back to a facility and return it to the Ministry of Environment and Urbanism and submit documents showing that they have fulfilled their duty. But this is a rough job, and most companies don't want to deal with it. PAGCHEV, çevko and akçev make this process for companies in the market. We collect the plastic needed for the companies on behalf of the municipalities we have contracted. We take all the control and follow-up processes as pagevel. We take the price of this whole system from the brand and do it on behalf of him and if there is a surplus value, we spend it on training and raising awareness. Because the ministry says that you will allocate a share of income and education. In the background of this beautiful story, there is a very troubling process and bureaucracy. But we're still loving it. Because we respect both our business and the environment and society. On the other hand, we have done an important job in order to correct the problematic industry concept in Turkey.
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Is waste collection facilities sufficient as a number in Turkey? Facilities as a number, but not as a quality. According to the rules are collected, quality product is obtained, the result is positive, the complete documents of the facility, they have to ask. These areas must be properly controlled and controlled by municipalities and ministries. Because the real part of the job ends in these institutions. How does pagev play a role in the educational field? As pagev, there are two schools of Foundation (Technical High School) and one of our economic institutions (pagevç). We are actively working on training and raising awareness outside our technical schools. PAGEV has undertaken the training of hundreds of students on packaging waste in schools in Turkey and in different educational institutions. We carry out these trainings with the municipalities we work with. Recently, we started to walk through doors and train. We are transferring all of this to people in a simpler and more understandable way. We're preparing brochures, public spools. |
Although it is claimed to be harmful, the amount of plastic used in our daily lives was 1.5 million tons in the 1950's and today it reached 340 million tons. “Because plastic, glass, metal and Wood have replaced many other substances,” said Yavuz Eroglu, president of pagev. Easy to shape, the desired color, easy to reach, and more importantly, economic. Plastic can be soft from silk, hard from steel. It's the biggest problem with all this being cheap. It is cheaper than other packaging and puts it in the last place in terms of Assembly. In the packaging collection business, earnings are calculated from unit cost. It doesn't pay as much as glass and metal as it does because its specific weight is low. For this reason, collectors can ignore plastics. Therefore, it is very important that the plastic is collected separately at the source. Thus, it can be sent back quickly without damaging nature.”
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"YOU HAVE TO BE READY TO RUN AT ALL TIMES OF LIFE!” Born in Istanbul in 1973, Yavuz Eroğlu graduated from Istanbul Technical University Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering and started his career at SEM plastic, a family business. He has been the company's executive position since 2002 after taking office at many levels of the company. Eroglu is active in non-governmental organizations as well as business life and serves in many associations in Turkey and abroad. Yavuz Eroğlu, the first Turkish businessman to be elected to the executive board member of European Plastic Manufacturers Association (EUPC), was the founder president of Istanbul Technical University (I.T.Finish.) Environmental adventure started with the Environmental Club, Waste Free Oceans Foundation established in Europe, Turkey, Middle East and Africa continues with the presidency. Yavuz Eroğlu's hustle in the business and industry is not very different in his social life. The intense stress and pace in my business life is taking part in marathon conditions both at home and abroad. There are also various medals in this field. Yavuz Eroğlu summarizes the philosophy of life in his business and social life with the following words: “we need to be ready to run at all times of life!” |
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