This man is one of the many residents of Beijing and other Chinese cities who make a living digging bottles and cardboard out of trash cans around the city to sell to recycling centers. Others have a set spot in their neighborhood where residents will bring them their recyclables. But with the downturn in the economy and prices for recyclable goods dropping, competition in the business is fierce. The neighborhood recyclables-collecting types have said that if they leave their spot for a day, they will be replaced by someone else desperate to make a buck.
