In memoriam: Alfred Arnold Nijkerk

The Bureau of International Recycling (BIR), Brussels, has announced the death of Alfred Arnold Nijkerk, describing him as “a towering figure in the global recycling community and one of the most respected voices in our industry’s history.”

Before his death, Nijkerk remained the only living recycler who was present at the founding of BIR in Amsterdam almost eight decades ago and an ongoing supporter of the organization and its mission, the organization says.

A law graduate from Leiden University in 1954, Nijkerk joined his family’s scrap recycling company in Amsterdam two years later, becoming the sixth generation of his family to enter the business, which was established in 1823.

Over a 52-year career, he played a central role in advancing the scrap and ship dismantling sectors, later becoming chairman of the Shell-Billiton Recycling Division. His leadership extended across numerous industry bodies, having served as president of the Dutch Metal Recycling Federation for seven years, 26 consecutive years as president of the Dutch Scrap Association and having held several key roles within BIR, including vice president of the Ferrous Division, vice president of the Shredder and Stainless Steel committees and chairman of the PR Committee.

Nijkerk also was a communicator and educator, having founded Magazine Recycling Benelux in 1966 and serving as chief editor for more than 25 years. He also co-authored the influential Handbook of Recycling Techniques, published in 1995, with Wijnand Dalmijn, a professor at the Technical University of Delft in the Netherlands, who provided technical sketches for the book and expertise on mechanical separation techniques. The book, sold in 86 countries, received the first Dutch Recycling award in 2003.

Beginning in1998, Nijkerk contributed regular market reports on ferrous and stainless steel scrap to Recycling International and tapped into his vast knowledge of BIR and the recycling industry at large for the publication of the organization’s 60th anniversary brochure and the history of recycling, "Recycling through the ages," both available on the BIR website.

In 1992, Her Majesty Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands knighted Nijkerk in recognition of his outstanding service to industry and society. He attended his 100th BIR Convention in Milan in 2005 and was made an honorary member of the organization in 2008, marking a lifetime of dedication to the global recycling family.

The BIR says it pays tribute to Nijkerk’s contributions, pioneering spirit and unwavering belief in the power of recycling to shape a better world, adding that he will be remembered with deep respect and gratitude by colleagues and friends across generations.