Recycling Enterprise Plants 1000 Trees for National Tree Week
Galway social enterprise Bounce Back Recycling (BBR) has planted 1,000 trees since January, to mark National Tree Week this week. “For every booking we had this year to date, we planted a tree,” says BBR manager, Martin Ward.
“Our business is environmentally focused anyway, recycling mattresses to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill. But we also wanted to contribute to local environmental projects, so this was a perfect match for us. However, we want to continue planting one tree for every household booking on our website into the future.”
“It’s estimated that mattresses make up 15,000 tons of landfill waste every year,” says Martin Ward. “In Galway, for example, an estimated 32,516 mattresses are dumped each year. At Bounce Back Recycling, we believe this can be totally eradicated, if everyone chooses proper recycling practices. And if you choose BBR for recycling your mattress, then over 30,000 trees could be planted too.”
BBR worked with the tree planting initiative, Trees on the Land, to plant trees for 13 different projects. These projects ranged from schools and colleges to towns and community gardens, says Imogen Rabone of Trees on the Land. They also included a nursing home and a farm.
"We were delighted to work with Bounce Back Recycling to plant trees in Co. Galway and Co. Sligo this winter. It is important to us to match local business sponsors with planting sites nearby,” she adds.
“We were particularly pleased to have a recycling project help with our tree planting work in the community. The trees planted will help to support biodiversity and to soak up carbon dioxide in the air along with many other benefits."
Half of the 1,000 trees were planted for the Athenry Tree Cover Project alone. Jim Reidy of Athenry Tidy Towns thanked Bounce Back Recycling for their help sponsoring trees this season. “We plant trees every year in Athenry and having support from a local business is fantastic for us."
Martin Ward says BBR would be keen to hear from other local community groups who want their help in planting trees for their projects. Bounce Back Recycling (BBR) was established in 2017 in Galway to create a viable solution for problematic bulky goods, like mattresses and furniture. The aim was and remains to provide a quality service which diverts as many mattresses & furniture items away from landfill as possible.
“So, we work with local councils, retailers and householders to collect discarded mattresses. We work with local authorities, householders and retail outlets to improve recycling rates across the country.”
“First of all, Bounce Back Recycling collects the mattresses at our recycling facilities, civic amenity sites or furniture stores. We pick them up regularly every month or on demand and then we deconstruct the mattresses by hand.”
“Bounce Back Recycling is a social enterprise – a business that aims to achieve social good, not just make profits. We are profit making but we reinvest the profits into the business rather than dividing them among shareholders. We also provide employment opportunities and job training for Travellers, who face high barriers to employment.”
Find out more here about Bounce Back Recycling or call them on 091 760877.
