Rhode Island Enacts Mattress Recycling Legislation

July 15, 2013, Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee signed legislation into law that would create the nation’s second mattress recycling program. 

 

The International Sleep Products Association (ISPA), Alexandria, Va., says it worked closely with Rhode Island Senate Majority Leader Dominick Ruggerio and House Environment and Natural Resources Committee Chair Rep. Arthur Handy to craft legislation to recycle used mattresses in Rhode Island. The legislation tasks mattress manufacturers with creating an organization to responsibly collect and process discarded mattresses throughout Rhode Island.

 

“We were pleased to work with state officials to develop legislation that promotes the proper disposal of mattresses while keeping costs low and creating jobs,” says ISPA Vice President of Government Relations and Policy Christopher Hudgins. “The Rhode Island law follows industry-supported legislation that recently passed in Connecticut and serves as a model for other states interested in tackling this important issue.”

 

The new law requires mattress manufacturers to propose a detailed plan for mattress recycling in Rhode Island by July 1, 2015. The program will create opportunities for all mattresses in Rhode Island to be recycled and will help combat the issue of illegally dumped mattresses, ISPA says. 

 

In May, Connecticut became the first state to enact a mattress stewardship bill. Similar mattress recycling legislation is currently working its way through the California Legislature.