Over 24,500 old mattresses are dumped in County Meath every year, says leading social enterprise, Bounce Back Recycling (BBR). “Mattress dumping costs around €180 for every mattress that ends up in landfill,” says BBR manager, Martin Ward. “So, that’s an estimated loss of over €4.4m to the local economy.”
This innovative, traveller-led social enterprise is launching a door-to-door mattress collection service for County Meath on Thursday 3rd November. “We will literally collect the mattress from your house or apartment,” says Martin. “All you have to do is book your collection online at https://bouncebackrecycling.ie/arrange-collection-mattress/
“As one customer said to me, you can’t fit a mattress into a Nissan Micra!” Martin explains that lots of householders would prefer to see their old mattresses recycled rather than going to landfill. “But they simply can’t find a way to do this. Our collection service makes it easier and more affordable, and we are extending across the country as fast as we can to meet demand.”
“It’s also better for the environment and the local economy. The current level of mattress dumping in Meath is equivalent to around 614,000 kilograms of waste. Almost 522,000 kilograms of this could be diverted into the circular economy, using the materials we extract by recycling. This creates green jobs and boosts the economy rather than draining it with dumping costs.”
Turning Rubbish into Resources
Since BBR opened in 2017, they have diverted over 70,000 mattresses from landfill. “The materials recovered from our recycling process can be used for a range of other products,” says Martin. These include using soft materials for making carpet underlay, and potentially, home insulation products. The metal springs can be recycled for use in the steel industry.
Martin believes that BBR can help families, local authorities, furniture retailers, hotels and others to make mattress recycling an achievable option for them. They offer collection services not just for civic amenity sites, but also for furniture stores, hotels and householders.
Mattress Dumping and Landfill Space
“Ireland is fast running out of landfill space and bulky items like mattresses take up too much room. A mattress takes around 100 years to decompose, so it makes no sense to send it to landfill. Also, when BBR recycles a mattress, we recover more reusable materials than regular shredding does.”
“By 2025, at least 55% of municipal waste must be recycled to meet EU targets. Furthermore, within 13 years the amount of waste going to landfill must be reduced to 10% of all municipal waste. BBR can help local authorities to achieve these targets.”
BBR administrator Nicola Devers says public and private sectors need to act now to reduce mattress waste and turn it into a valuable resource instead via recycling. “Householders can play their part too, and we can help make it easier for them to get rid of old mattresses. Many people simply have no means of transporting a mattress for disposal. So, a door collection service is ideal.”
Enterprise for Social Good
BBR are a social enterprise, so they invest all their profits back into growing their recycling business. They also provide employment opportunities and job training for Travellers, who face high barriers to employment. “So, as our mattress recycling business grows, so will the jobs and training places,” says Nicola.
Find out more about Bounce Back Recycling or book a domestic mattress collection at www.bouncebackrecycling.ie. Or contact them directly about local authority, or commercial collections on 091 760877 or info@bouncebackrecycling.ie