Mattresses that end up in landfill take up to 100 years to fully decompose. They only start to decompose after 15 years, and steel springs take over 50 years to decompose. But elements such as polyurethane foam (PU) can take up to 100 years to decompose.
It costs around €180 to send just one mattress to landfill, because they take so long to decompose, and it costs so much to maintain landfill sites. In County Galway alone, around 32,500 mattresses go to landfill or incineration in every year – an estimated loss of over €5.8m to the local economy. If even half of those mattresses were recycled instead, that’s a saving of almost €3m to our economy.
There are environmental savings too. Recycling reduces the demand for landfill which helps protect our forests, rivers, lakes and wetlands, which are natural habitats for wildlife.
Why Bounce Back Recycling?
We are a social enterprise that has diverted over 120,000 mattresses from landfill and re-used the extracted materials. We offer collection services and a drop off facility to retailers, householders, local authorities in 13 counties. This helps county councils and businesses achieve EU targets on waste and recycling in line with the National Waste Plan. By 2025, at least 55% of municipal waste must be recycled to meet EU targets. Furthermore, by 2034, landfill must be reduced to 10% of all municipal waste.
Our team are skilfully trained to break down mattresses by hand to ensure the maximum number of components are recycled. Soft materials are used for making carpet underlay, while metal springs are recycled for use by companies like Galway Metal. BBR eventually plans to expand to all 26 counties.
By using the recycled materials, BBR puts money back into the circular economy, creating green jobs. From January 2023 to January 2024, we achieved a 57% increase in items recycled for Domestic Customers and a 44% increase in Recycled Materials.
Our thriving business takes pride in continuing the tradition of Traveller ‘circular economy’ work. BBR was established in 2017 by Galway Traveller Movement to provide employment for Travellers, who face 80% unemployment. We offer jobs which reflect the Traveller culture of recycling.
BBR seeks to influence and inform consumer behaviour around purchasing, maintaining and managing end of life mattresses. We engage local and national media
to raise awareness. Media coverage we have secured includes Nationwide, Pat Kenny Show, Irish Times, RTE The Business, Irish Independent, Mirror, Sun, Star, Galway Bay FM, and various regional radio and press.
Apply for BBR’s Retailer Recycling Certificate
If you are a retailer who is already actively recycling with BBR, please email Nicola at info@bouncebackrecycling.ie with the business name as you would like it to appear on the certificate.
If you are a retailer who is not actively recycling with BBR, please call Nicola on 091 760877 to discuss working together.