Mattress Recycling Discussion

Mattress Talk Industry Trends, Resources, & theUnderGround (TMU)
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Hi, I am a new member even though I have been lurking online for a few years. Will be purchasing a new mattress in the near future but am troubled by little or no mention being made with regards to recycling of old mattresses when being thrown out. I live in the GTA in Ontario Canada and my municipality does not have a recycling program in place even though landfill space is becoming scarce.

Have found a business which claims to recycle mattress in my area called Recyc-Mattress Inc. but none others. As I live in one of the most populous areas in Canada, this is disconcerting.

Why isn’t this lack of recycling being discussed? Lots of talk about organic mattresses, but no discussion about mattresses when their useful life has come to an end. Shouldn’t the mattress industry and the government be involved in providing a solution?

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Hey passionatecyclist,

Welcome to The Mattress Underground :slight_smile: !

[quote]Hi, I am a new member even though I have been lurking online for a few years. Will be purchasing a new mattress in the near future but am troubled by little or no mention being made with regards to recycling of old mattresses when being thrown out. I live in the GTA in Ontario Canada and my municipality does not have a recycling program in place even though landfill space is becoming scarce.
[/quote]

Nice to see that you’ve surfaced after lurking around awhile and hope that you’re finding the available resources and research tools helpful. The topic of mattress recycling is one that TMU is quite interested in for many reasons and one that we have been researching behind the scenes for some time now. Not only is access to recycling of old mattresses a concern, but also the creation of waste from “serial mattress returners” is as well. While I am not familiar with recycling programs in the GTA/ Ontario Canada area, I do follow the Mattress Recycling Council’s work, they are a non profit organization created by the International Sleep Products Association/ ISPA. Their consumer-facing program is known as Bye Bye Mattress and they currently offer recycling options in California, Connecticut, and Rhode Island, as well as Canadian locations too.

[quote]Have found a business which claims to recycle mattress in my area called Recyc-Mattress Inc. but none others. As I live in one of the most populous areas in Canada, this is disconcerting.
[/quote]

This link will take you to Bye Bye Mattress’s partners in Canada. Note: Recover Canada Ltd. Is in the Toronto area; it may be worth contacting them to see if this local source is still participating in the recycling program in the event you should need another choice for mattress recycling.

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Absolutely agree that there should be more mattress recycling conversations, passionatecyclist, and we will be addressing this topic in future articles. With ISPA’s help and programming encouragement from the Mattress Recycling Council, the mattress industry and state governments are working together towards more sustainable solutions. These efforts take time, money, and support from many levels to become operational and sustainable. There are many complexities with state and local governments to initiate recycling programs, as well as volunteer workers and logistical concerns to coordinate. From a landfill and waste management standpoint, availability of supported mattress recycling programs seems a no-brainer; however, organizing the approvals and resources take time. From Bye Bye Mattress’s site, here are some impressive stats from the participating US states utilizing Bye Bye Mattress programing:

• 1.7 Million mattresses are recycled annually;

• 65 Million pounds of useful material diverted from the waste stream;

• More than 75% of a mattress can be recycled, including foam, fibers, metal & box springs, and wood;

• More than 8 Million mattresses have been collected for recycling in California, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.

Each consumer has a voice and with that voice is potential for making change. For those who want to be part of a more responsible mattress life cycle purchase, ask the questions “What happens to my old mattress now? How will it be disposed of?” As more voices are heard and more consumers work towards making environmentally sustainable choices, hopefully more mattress recycling options will become the norm rather than the exception. I laud your concern passionatecyclist and appreciate that you are doing the recycling research prior to your next mattress purchase. Please let us know how this works out for you, I’d be interested in hearing how things go :wink: .

Thanks,
Sensei

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Heartened to find out that the topic of mattress recycling is indeed a “burning” issue. FYI I had reviewed the Bye Bye Mattress site already and Recovery Canada does not appear to still be an entity. Phone number listed in your information does not exist for Recovery Canada and a search on the internet leads to a dead end.

Have emailed Recyc- Canada for more details as they seem to be my only recycling option.

Also have emailed the Minister of Environment for the Province of Ontario as recycling is a provincial jurisdiction. My concern with the Province is that there is talk about bringing forward legislation for making the producers of product harmful to the environment financially responsible for creating and sustaining recycling programs but no where I have read that the mattress industry will be included. The Ministry’s answer will be revealing. Lots of talk about the merits of organic mattresses but I do not think that many people have stopped to think that organic does not mean recyclable.