Being proud of recycling is something that characterizes René Fontaine. His face is familiar to everyone who works at the Raw Materials Recovery Company (ERMP); he has been there for more than 20 years, which he presumes in front of this journalist.
Las Tunas, Cuba.- He works as a recycling manager, a type of employment that is not so new. “The first thing that is needed to carry out this function is to have the equipment that makes the work viable, they gave us electric cycles, weights... that help us to collect the products that are on the streets.
“This way of working also allows us to go from door to door and collect all the recyclable material that is in the houses, which is not waste, clarifies Fontaine. In the company, we can recover it because it is not garbage, but raw material."
As part of his work, Fontaine assumes it is essential to explain to people all the processes that these materials face, because “If it is paper that is donated, we can recover up to a ton; and we can bring cars back to life in the case of scrap.”
The main task begins in the schools, with the pioneers, and in the houses where collections can be made. Afterward, it continues in the work centers.
These are some ideas that this recycling manager gives to maintain a cleaner planet and help the country's economy. “The medicine bottles are very important, by donating them we are preventing the country from buying them abroad; this significantly helps us because they can be reused in the Green Medicine pharmacy for natural syrups.
"Getting to us is not difficult," says René, who walks the streets of this city every day. “We have to go to each CDR, we coordinate with the delegates, the presidents of the popular councils and we inform them how often we can go to the area.”
“The most important element of these calls is the awareness of the residents. We are going to recover raw material, and that is why we ask for all your support.”
His time passes through the streets, fulfilling a mission that for René Fontaine represents the dedication of 20 years, sources of knowledge, and awareness of his daily work.
