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Dutch police catch woman smuggling eight songbirds through Schiphol

Cara Räker 🇩🇪
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Dutch police catch woman smuggling eight songbirds through Schiphol

“Chirp, Chirp” — did you hear that? It might be someone trying to smuggle live animals past Schiphol’s custom control. We’re not joking. In October, a woman was caught in the act while trying to smuggle eight songbirds from Suriname to Russia. 

During her pitstop in the Netherlands, officers found the animals hidden away in a karaoke set — yes, a literal karaoke set. 

And she’s not alone

You might be surprised, but this story is not an unusual one. According to nu.nl, Dutch police and customs control confiscated a total of 647 live animals in October alone.

In another incident, officers at Schipol airport found 145 (!) reptiles and amphibians in a smuggler’s suitcase. So far, no arrests have been made. After spending a night in jail our songbird smuggler was let go again. 

Of course, we’ve heard of drug smugglers before — remember the pineapple-cocaine incident? But why animals? 🤔 

So, what’s so great about animals?

Most of the time, it’s because the animals are protected in their country of origin, such as the songbirds in Surinam. 

This means they can be sold for a really high price on foreign black markets. Alongside living and breathing animals, the trade with products made from protected plant and animal species is also flourishing. In October, Dutch police dealt with over 2,300 of these cases. 

The Netherlands is actively partaking in the global combat against the illegal trade with protected plants and animals. 

It’s especially important to protect biodiversity and the well-being of the animals which are being smuggled. We’ll take a wild guess here and say the eight birds were not too comfortable in that karaoke kit. 

🐦😠🐦😠

What do you think of this wild (tee hee) story? Let us know in the comments!

Feature Image: DutchReview/Canva

Dutch hedgehogs are struggling this winter: here’s why

Katrien Nivera 🇵🇭
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Dutch hedgehogs are struggling this winter: here’s why

Hedgehogs are getting ready to hibernate for the upcoming winter but with an overabundance of hoglets (baby hedgehogs!), animal shelters all over the Netherlands are the busiest they’ve been all year, according to RTL Nieuws.

These precious little ones can be found foraging in November around forests and parks, and other heavily vegetated areas — you may even find one in your garden! 

Environmental concerns for hedgehogs

Winters are becoming milder and starting later and hedgehogs in the Netherlands are beginning to nest later too. As a result, hoglets don’t have enough fat to hibernate through the winter months, facing starvation and sickness. 

Hedgehog shelter Egelopvang Den Haag and many other sanctuaries are becoming overcrowded with the wild hoglets found in the worst possible condition. With the help of many vets and volunteers, these shelters do their best to nurse hoglets and hedgehogs throughout the winter but there are plenty of things you can do, starting in your own garden:

  • ❌ Don’t leave traps or pesticides: Hedgehogs are garden-friendly and regular, old friendly animals. They feed on plenty of unwanted insects and pests, and protect biodiversity. 
  • 🍃 Keep your gardens green: Autumn leaves, dry grass, branches, moss, you name it. Hedgehogs use these to forage and build shelter safely, so don’t throw anything away!
  • 💧 Leaving out food: Dry cat food and water provide hedgehogs with enough nutrients to survive. Avoid foods like peanut butter and milk, even if the Dutch love them. 
  • 🚑 Call your local pet shelter: Treating hedgehogs yourself without the supervision of a licensed vet or animal specialist is a no-no. If you see a struggling hedgehog, carefully pick them up with a towel, call your local dierenambulance (animal ambulance), and await instructions. 

Consider volunteering at a shelter, looking into taking care of hedgehogs at home, and making local outdoor spaces like gardens and parks just a little more cozy for these animals. 

Have you seen hedgehogs in the wild? Tell us your experiences in the comments below!

Featured Image: Egor Kamelev/Pexels

Cooling units set up outside Dutch funeral homes to tackle rise in COVID-19 deaths

Sarah O'Leary 🇮🇪
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Cooling units set up outside Dutch funeral homes to tackle rise in COVID-19 deaths

The Dutch funeral organisation, DELA has made the decision to set up extra cooling units outside of their funeral homes in order to keep up with the rise in coronavirus infections and deaths.

Speaking to RTL Nieuws, DELA spokeseman Martijn van de Koolwijk, explains that “it is one of the first measures when there is an oversupply of deceased bodies.”

Rising coronavirus infections and deaths

And why are Dutch funeral homes worried about too many bodies? The rising coronavirus infections and deaths. Koolwijk explains that this measure was also taken at the beginning of the year, when infection numbers were at yet another peak.

“At the beginning of the year, refrigerated containers were placed at funeral homes in 14 cities,” he says. “They were removed again when the number of infections and deaths decreased at the beginning of the summer.”

Now, the organisation has deemed it necessary to roll out the coolers once again with the units being added to funeral homes in Nijmegen, Leiden, Bilthoven, Geleen, Eindhoven Roermond Roosendaal, and Goes Den Bosch.

“It is one of the first measures that can be taken quickly,” Koolwijk says.

Follow DutchReview on Facebook for the latest coronavirus news and updates.

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PCR tests and quarantine: Dutch health experts advise strict measures for travellers to the Netherlands

Christine Stein Hededam 🇩🇰
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PCR tests and quarantine: Dutch health experts advise strict measures for travellers to the Netherlands

While many of us have been busy booking flights for the holidays, the National Institute for Public Health and Environment (RIVM) has been busy recommending new travel restrictions.

And what are they? The RIVM advises the Dutch government to enact new travel restrictions for the Netherlands — but don’t go cancelling your Christmas travels just yet!

Mandatory PCR tests for all travellers to the Netherlands

What would these look like? Amongst others, the RIVM urges mandatory coronavirus tests for all travellers — including people who are members of the double jab club (aka fully vaccinated). For unvaccinated travellers from outside the EU, they also recommend a quarantine obligation.

And that’s not all that’s on the table, according to De Jonge’s tweets the Dutch cabinet is also looking to discuss the following:

“We also want to make agreements in a European context about:
✈️pre-departure testing for non-EU travellers
✈️ quarantine obligation for everyone on arrival from a very high-risk area and for unvaccinated on arrival from non-EU areas”

No strict travel measures yet

Thankfully for nervous internationals, the government is looking to other European countries before enacting new regulations, reports the RTL Nieuws.

The Dutch Minister of Health, Hugo de Jonge, wants to consult with other EU countries to avoid a “patchwork” of travel restrictions across Europe, says a ministry spokesperson. Additionally, the Dutch government hopes to receive advice on the Omnikron variant that’s apparently been laying low in the Netherlands since before its rise to international fame.

What do you think of the potential travel restrictions? Tell us in the comments below!

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Major Dutch cities want to reduce the speed limit to 30km/h

Farah Al Mazouni 🇸🇾 🇺🇸
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Major Dutch cities want to reduce the speed limit to 30km/h

In a letter to the cabinet and the house of representatives, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, and Utrecht are rushing a decision to reduce the maximum speed limit within the cities to 30 kilometres per hour.

While almost half of the roads in these cities already have a 30 kilometres per hour limit in place, half are still far from adequate as their roads are getting busier, says AD.

Take for example Amsterdam, which — according to the city’s alderman for Traffic and Transportpoints, records that 80% of their traffic accidents happen on roads with a maximum speed of 50 kilometres per hour. That’s alarming! 🛑

All in all, this urgent push by the four cities really comes down to reducing the number of fatal road casualties. “In the past, we gave cars too much space in cities, now quality of life is paramount. If we want to better protect pedestrians and cyclists, we have to take action,” says Amsterdam’s alderman for Traffic and Transport.

Limitations

There are legal restrictions surrounding this 30 km/h mission, however. For example, there’s a legal liability if a road has a lower speed limit but do not have speed bumps — therefore the city becomes liable in case of an accident on such road.

Yet, as the cities argue in their letter, these speed-reducing items such as speed bumps do get in the way if installed on major roads. Emergency services vehicles like ambulances and fire trucks can’t rush on-site if all roads had speed bumps according to RTL Nieuws.

The Dutch house of representatives is expected to debate road safety in a session tomorrow, and hopefully, the decisions and arguments don’t leave us like deer in headlights.

What do you think of the proposed plan by the major cities to reduce the speed limit to 30 km/h? Tell us in the comments!

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Weekly update: infections rise slightly, while deaths skyrocket

Nicole Ogden 🇹🇭 🇺🇸
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Weekly update: infections rise slightly, while deaths skyrocket

The RIVM has released its weekly coronavirus figures from November 23 to November 30. The number of hospitalisations has increased slightly, while the number of deaths went up significantly.

The number of hospitalisations and ICU admissions have increased slightly while the number of deaths significantly increased.

Over the past week, the RIVM has reported 155,152 new infections in the Netherlands. A slight increase compared to last week’s report of 153,957 infections.

The percentage of positive tests decreased to 21.4% compared to 22.2% from the week before.

Deaths

The number of patients who have died from coronavirus-related complications has increased drastically in the past week. This week, 367 people passed away, compared to 265 people the previous week.

Hospitalisations

Both the number of admissions to the nursing ward and the ICU has gone up. The past week saw 1,629 new admissions to the nursing ward and 367 new patients in the ICU. The week before, there were 1,662 and 265 respectively.

Evening lockdown

On Sunday, November 28, the Netherlands entered an “evening lockdown” which is expected to last for at least three weeks.

This means that restaurants, bars, cafés, cinemas, parks, gyms, amateur sports and other venues close at 5 PM. Supermarkets and other essential shops are an exception to this rule.

Schools, however, are allowed to stay open but with additional measures of wearing a mask for those in Group Six and higher.

Omicron variant in the Netherlands

The Omicron variant was discovered to have been in the Netherlands as early as 19 and 23 of November, well before 13 passengers on a KLM flight from South Africa tested positive for the new variant.

The variant was present in the Netherlands before the variant was globally classified, and it was not clear whether the people who had Omicron in mid-November had been to South Africa before testing positive.

Year-long QR code for those who recovered from coronavirus

If you have recovered from the coronavirus, you can receive a proof of recovery QR code as a corona pass which is valid for one year.

Until recently, if you recovered from coronavirus, you would get a code that was valid for only 180 days — now, that validity is extended to 365 days.

However, this year-long QR code is valid only in the Netherlands. The current European policy is 180 days for a proof of recovery QR code.

Follow DutchReview on Facebook for the latest news and coronavirus updates.

Feature Image: IgorVetushko/Depositphotos

The Netherlands had the Omicron variant before it was globally classified

Farah Al Mazouni 🇸🇾 🇺🇸
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The Netherlands had the Omicron variant before it was globally classified

’twas before the two KLM planes, the hotel escaping couple, and the WHO’s classification as a variant of concern — that the first Omicron cases were in the Netherlands.

In fact, some Dutch cases of the concerning coronavirus variant can be detected as far back as 19 and 23 November.

In samples taken by the Dutch lab, Saltro, the Municipal Health Service (GGD) reported that some samples collected on these dates contained an abnormality in the spike of protein found in the virus. 🦠

Of these concerning samples, two cases have now been confirmed to be Omicron. However, it’s not yet certain whether the individuals have been to South Africa. Following this discovery, the GGDs have launched an investigation into the cases and contacted the people involved.

Ramifications

The World Health Organization (WHO) currently assesses the current Omicron global risk as “very high” with uncertainties on the degree of vaccine immunity and effectiveness.

The two KLM planes that landed from South Africa in Amsterdam carried 13 cases of the Omicron variant — which at that time, were thought to be the first in the Netherlands.

Follow DutchReview on Facebook and Instagram for the latest on the coronavirus in the Netherlands.

Feature Image: Polina Tankilevitch/Pexels

Sustainable housing: Dutch companies want to build more wooden houses

Christine Stein Hededam 🇩🇰
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Sustainable housing: Dutch companies want to build more wooden houses

The Dutch construction industry emphasises that more houses will need to be built using wood if the Netherlands is to achieve its climate goals, reports the NOS.

Some smaller companies with a focus on sustainable construction have advocated for wooden houses for a long time but now the big players are finally jumping on the sustainable bandwagon. 💃

The Royal BAM Group (the largest construction company in the Netherlands based on revenue) are building a factory that’ll produce 1,000 wooden homes per year in 2025.

Heijmans — another major construction company with headquarters in the Netherlands — is also planning to increase its production of wooden houses.

Better late than never

Tony Mol from the construction company Startblock tells the NOS that even though their support comes rather late, “it’s fantastic that the big builders are now also joining in.”

According to Mol, the move towards wooden houses has been happening slowly over the past 15 years, so the sustainable innovation didn’t come from the large construction companies (are we surprised?). Nevertheless, he now sees them as “partners who can help solve the need.”

What need is that? Well, the Netherlands has to invest more in timber construction to build a more sustainable future. 🏡

Why should we move to wooden houses?

According to TU Delft researcher, Pablo van der Lugt, the production of concrete and cement releases “an insane amount of CO2” and resultingly, “about 7% of global emissions come from cement production.”

However, “wood stores CO2 during growth. And during production, there are much fewer emissions than with concrete.” 🙌

The downside to timber production is that it’s more expensive than concrete due to increases in the price of wood. Van der Lugt is nevertheless optimistic. He expects the prices of wood to fall again soon since “the wood we use in the Netherlands comes from sustainably managed coniferous forests in Europe. More is being added quickly, about 300,000 football fields per year.”

Additionally, he mentions the possibility of taxing concrete production to make it less attractive. 💁‍♂️

Before we all pack up and move to Swedish log cabins, 🎒 it’s important to know that one: wooden houses don’t have to look like cabins, and two: concrete houses won’t completely vanish from the Dutch cityscape. Rather, Van der Lugt explains that “about half of the housing construction can eventually be made with wood.”

What do you think of this move by Dutch construction companies? And would you move to a wooden house? Tell us in the comments below!

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Caught coronavirus? Your QR code will now be valid for a year in the Netherlands

Farah Al Mazouni 🇸🇾 🇺🇸
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Caught coronavirus? Your QR code will now be valid for a year in the Netherlands

Suffering from coronavirus? We have one piece of good news to cheer you up — your proof of recovery QR code will now be valid for an entire year in the Netherlands.

When you have recovered from coronavirus in the Netherlands, you are given a QR code that can be used as a corona pass. Up until recently, this code could be used for up to 180 days.

Now, this has been extended to 365 days based on the Outbreak Management Team’s (OMT) latest advice.

In October, the OMT clarified that coronavirus antibodies are effective in 90% of people who were previously infected within one year after their recovery. Meaning, it made sense for the issued coronavirus certificates’ expiration date to be extended as well.

Only valid in the Netherlands

This year-long extension is only valid within the Netherlands, however, so don’t be running to the airport just yet! The recovery QR codes will maintain a 180 day validity period outside the Netherlands in accordance with the current European policy, RTL Nieuws reports.

Do you already have the old 180 day QR code? You can now extend its validity through the CoronaCheck App.

Re-infection?

But as we all know by now, just because you got the virus (or were vaccinated) doesn’t mean complete and utter immunity, while we wish it wasn’t the case — breakthroughs can still happen.

According to the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), the possibility of reinfection is still on the table, however, it is not as common.

The percentage of reinfection is about 1% to 2% and “people who get re-infected generally seem to get less seriously ill,” says the RIVM.

What do you think of the latest extension on the Dutch QR code? Tell us in the comments below!

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Dodging restrictions: Dutch youths are crossing the German border to party

Nicole Ogden 🇹🇭 🇺🇸
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Dodging restrictions: Dutch youths are crossing the German border to party

People will do whatever it takes to get a good feestje on! Dutch youths are crossing the border into Germany on the weekends to party.

These youths will rent party buses from the Twente area and go into Germany on the weekends because the clubs are open longer there, reports the NOS.

In the Netherlands, going to a club or a discotheque is not possible right now because of the evening lockdown. The solution? Just cross the border, apparently! 🙄

German clubs open until 4:00

“We like to go out and we can go out late, until 4:00. We have a QR-code so we believe that we’re prepared and that’s responsible enough,” said one Dutch partygoer. 🤡

Local bus companies don’t seem to have an issue with taking the kids to Germany.

Mike Mensik, a bus driver from Fietex, said that giving bus rides to these kids is his only form of income at the moment, apart from a few day rides until 20:00.

The Twente security region are pissed

The Twente security region is not happy with the Dutch youth or with the bus drivers who are willing to take them across the border.

“You have a societal responsibility. You know what the situation is at this moment with the virus. If you want to earn income, I would say not right now, and not like this,” said the chairman of the security region.

What do you think about Dutch youths going to party in Germany? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

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