Oregon to enact mattress recycling system

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has signed legislation to establish an industry-led statewide mattress recycling program.

The Alexandria, Virginia-based Mattress Recycling Council (MRC) states, “The mattress industry supports this new law, which authorizes an industry-organized nonprofit [such as MRC] to provide residents with free, convenient and accessible opportunities to discard old mattresses and divert them from waste to recycling.”

MRC says it will submit a program plan to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) no later than Oct. 1, 2023, and will propose launching the program in 2024. “This legislation is aligned with other successful recycling programs administered by MRC in California, Connecticut and Rhode Island,” the council says. It adds, “Since 2015, MRC has recycled more than 10 million mattresses and diverted more than 190,000 tons of steel, foam, fiber and wood from landfills.”

“By giving Oregonians a convenient way to recycle mattresses, we are reducing both waste once destined for the landfill and the likelihood of these items being illegally dumped,” says state Sen. James Manning (D-Eugene), a co-sponsor of Senate Bill 1576. “The public-private partnership authorized by this legislation will be good for state residents and the environment and will create good green jobs.”

MRC says it will propose funding its activities through a stewardship fee added to the cost of all mattresses and box springs purchased in Oregon, including online sales. MRC would then use the fee to establish collection sites and events where residents can drop off mattresses for free. In current program states, MRC says it accomplishes this by working with mattress retailers, the existing solid waste infrastructure, waste haulers, small businesses and nonprofit organizations. MRC says it also would recycle mattresses from commercial sources, including hotels and universities.

“We look forward to working with mattress manufacturers, retailers, recyclers, local governments and state officials to develop an efficient and effective program for collecting and recycling mattresses discarded by Oregon residents,” says Ryan Trainer, president of MRC and the International Sleep Products Association.

“What to do with an old mattress has been an age-old challenge for both the mattress and solid waste industries. MRC’s approach offers a practical and efficient solution to this problem,” says Doug Guffey MRC board chair and an executive with the Atlanta Attachment Co. and Hickory Springs Manufacturing.