EDITORIAL
3recyclinginternational.com | January/February | 2021
By the time you read this issue of
Recycling International the world will
have been in a state of coronavirus a
full year. So how are we dealing with
it?
‘Bored’ is the first word that crosses
my mind. I am not depressed by this
pandemic – generally I would say I am
a happy person – it’s just that not much
happens. You don’t see many people
(and those you do are mostly on a
computer screen), the office is empty,
there are no parties, dinners or family
visits and restaurants, bars and sports
facilities are all closed.
Worst of all, you are stuck at home.
You can go shopping for groceries or
go out walking but that’s about all the
excitement there is for most of us.
And, of course, you can’t make plans.
You cannot go on that US trip or book
a long weekend in Barcelona. You
could try, of course, but it may well be
a waste of money with the flight proba-
bly cancelled.
What does not help is the fact that,
however peaceful it sounds, I live in
the countryside in a tiny village of 500
people surrounded by meadows, cows
and woods. I mean, even without a
pandemic there’s not normally much
going on here.
When our government imposed a two-
week overnight curfew from 9pm to
5am, there were protests and riots in
many Dutch cities. Nothing like that
where I live. There are no shops in the
village, so the chance of looting is less
than zero. As I write this, the curfew
has been in place for more than a week
and I don’t see any differences; it’s as
quiet as ever.
But enough of my minor personal pan-
demic troubles; the coronacrisis is
affecting the lives and businesses of
everyone. Read the stories in this mag-
azine and you’ll notice that the words
‘pandemic’, ‘coronavirus’ and ‘crisis’
crop up in almost every feature and
article.
It’s not all bad news. Many recyclers
and equipment providers have been
challenged by the crisis to improvise
and innovate, which can only be good.
Also, and I’ve said this before, com-
pared to other industries such as hos-
pitality and tourism the recycling sec-
tor is doing pretty well. Look how
scrap prices have climbed up in recent
months!
Martijn Reintjes
Chief Editor, Recycling International
Recycling International
Informaticaweg 3
7007 CP Doetinchem
The Netherlands
Higher prices and
lower expectations
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03_editorial.indd 3 01-02-21 16:24
