King County LinkUp

To increase mattress collection and recycling in King County, LinkUp convened Mattress Recycling Summits in Kent in May 2017, September 2014, and December 2011. Approximately 50 stakeholders from all parts of the mattress supply chain attended each summit, including mattress retail and manufacturing businesses, mattress recyclers, nonprofit organizations, solid waste and recycling businesses, and state and local government solid waste staff.

Participants agreed that mattress disposal is a problem, shared information about the success of mattress recycling in Oregon and British Columbia, and discussed the challenges of mattress collection, storage, transportation and recycling. In 2011, when only one mattress processor was operating in Washington, experts from Oregon and British Columbia shared their experience. In 2014, local mattress processors were the featured speakers, in addition to colleagues from Oregon and British Columbia, as well as the director of the Mattress Recycling Council stewardship organization. In 2017, participants discussed the benefits and challenges of product stewardship and forming a supportive coalition for future statewide mattress stewardship legislation. King County also hosted and participated in recycling conferences in Washington and British Columbia to continue discussing and coordinating with stakeholders throughout the region.