The Mattress Recycling Council’s Bye Bye Mattress program offers University of Connecticut students and Connecticut residents an easy way to get rid of unwanted mattresses and box springs

The Mattress Recycling Council’s Bye Bye Mattress program offers University of Connecticut students and Connecticut residents an easy way to get rid of unwanted mattresses and box springs. 

With the school year coming to a close, students may utilize the program, a free service allowing them to drop off their mattresses for recycling. 

Since 2015, the program has been able to collect over 1.5 million mattresses, resulting in about 56 million pounds of material that would have otherwise been put in landfills,  according to the MRC’s marketing manager, Thomas J. Smith. 

“If you line up 1.5 million mattresses end-to-end, they will stretch along the entire East Coast,  from Maine to Key West,” Smith said.  

Dan McGowan, the Northeast senior program coordinator for the MRC, explains the origins and importance of the Bye Bye Mattress program and highlights that mattresses and box springs are 75% recyclable.  

“Before the program, mattresses here in Connecticut were mainly going to burn plants or landfills. Neither of those entities have a good use for mattresses, they take up a lot of space,” McGowan said. “The program was the first of its kind in the country — Connecticut was the first state and we have been steadily growing the past eight years of operation.” 

The program is able to recycle over 200,000 mattresses a year in Connecticut, McGowan explained. One way the MRC accomplishes this is through easy access. 

“We try to make it as easy as possible. It’s a no cost program. We have containers at various transfer stations throughout the state where residents can place their mattresses. From there, we do the rest of the work,” McGowan said. 

Smith clarified that the program is not only for Connecticut residents — Bye Bye Mattress works with various universities, schools and hotels to ensure as many mattresses as possible are being recycled.  

“In Connecticut in 2022, MRC collected more than 4,300 units from the state’s colleges and boarding schools for recycling,” said Smith.  

To find a mattress drop-off location, simply go onto the Bye Bye Mattress website. 

“We have a locator tool on our website where you can type in your address or zip code and it will direct you to the closest transer spot to drop off your mattress,” McGowan explained. 

The easy process makes a large impact to the environment and the town which they reside in, added Smith.  

“If someone doesn’t recycle because it is the right thing to do for the environment, then consider it is also the fiscally responsible thing to do for their town,” Smith stated.