Two thousand mattresses on average have been recycled monthly since the free mattress drop-off program was launched in Sacramento County last December by the Department of Waste Management and Recycling. That’s literally 24,000 fewer discarded mattresses stacking up in our landfill and has the added benefit of reducing illegal dumping. These recycled mattresses and box springs instead have been recycled for the production of new items, such as appliances, building and industrial materials, and textiles.
Drop It Off For No Additional Cost
The County’s Mattress Recycling Program,* in coordination with Bye Bye Mattress through the Mattress Recycling Council, allows individuals to drop off unwanted mattresses and box spring foundations for free at the County’s North Area Recovery Station and Kiefer Landfill. These mattresses are sorted and loaded into trailers to be picked up by a dedicated mattress recycler.
If you are replacing a mattress and getting a new one, California applies a small disposal fee to every mattress purchase to cover the cost of recycling those old units. If your new mattress units are being delivered, be sure to have the retailer pick up the old ones at the same time at no additional cost.
“The free mattress drop-off program has been a great success for Sacramento County. With the average weight of mattresses at roughly 50 lbs., that’s well over 1 million pounds of diverted material from the landfill to this point. Plus they don’t settle like other materials, which makes mattress recycling the best scenario for both the environment and for landfill management,” said Doug Kobold, County Department of Waste Management & Recycling Program Manager and Co-Chair of the California Mattress Recycling Organization Advisory Committee.
Get It Picked Up Once a Year For Free
If you don’t have a vehicle that can transport a bulky item like a mattress, that’s okay. Sacramento County Waste Management and Recycling residential customers can have five cubic yards of bulky items picked up at no additional cost once a year, and each additional pickup is $25. To schedule a pickup, go online to make a Bulky Waste Collection Appointment, or dial 916-875-5555.
*Mattresses that are being hauled from outside of California are not eligible for this no-cost recycling program and will be subject to the landfill’s bulky waste disposal fee. Loads of mattresses collected from mattress retailers or charity thrift locations within California will not be accepted at Kiefer Landfill or the North Area Recovery Facility and must be hauled directly to a mattress recycling facility.
