Legislation Would Set Up Mattress Recycling Program

 By  Amy Quinton

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Courtesy Oakland Local via Flickr Creative Commons    

Illegal mattress dumping is a costly problem for many California communities. One state Senator wants to force mattress manufacturers to set up a recycling program.

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Friday, March 08, 2013

Ohio Mattress Recycling is proud to announce the opening of its second recycling facility.

Congratulations is in order for Hilton Hotels for being the frontrunner in the hospitality industry for making mattress recycling part of their business practice.

Hilton Worldwide said it will begin a new mattress recycling program as it installs new beds and box springs at its hotels.

The company said it will recycle about 85% of those items into various products, diverting it from a landfill, according to a news release.

For example, steel springs will be used for tools, automobiles and construction materials. The wood will become tempered flooring, particle board shelving and a variety of pressed wood products. Cotton fibers will be used for oil filters, mats and stuffing. Quilts will find new life as carpet padding.

"Our hotels have purchased more than 50,000 mattresses in the past two years in the U.S. alone," Randy Gaines, vice president of engineering operations for the Americas at Hilton Worldwide, said in a statement. "This program presents a great opportunity for our hotels globally, offers a cost savings to owners and underscores Hilton Worldwide's commitment to further reduce our waste output."

Affordable mattress Recycling: Ohio Mattress Recycling continues to be the leader in Mattress Recycling throughout the country. We are working continously with the military, colleges, universities, hotels, motels,cruislines, and businesses. ISPA Continues to not be supportive of mattress recycling and take an initiative to help the mattress industry be more environmentally responsible with the way they conduct business. Its time to become more environmentally responsible with your industry. Recent studies have determined that an alarming number of harmful germs exist in your sleeping environment, including Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. These two contaminants in particular were found in 50% of mattresses and are major triggers of sickness and diarhoea. These statistics were based on 154 mattresses that were tested in hospitals and other institutional type multi-bed facilities. Leading experts have concluded that you would have a much higher reading in hotel and resort mattresses, as well as mattresses found in private homes due to the less sanitary nature of the surrounding environment. The reason for the testing was to determine how effective the decontamination of the bed was once the occupant had been moved, using a commercial grade of disinfectant spray. The study results suggest that the usual disinfection procedures, instead of diminishing the number of microbes, merely displace them from one part of the mattress to another. The number of microorganisms remains the same. The good news is that the Hygienitech™ process is a totally "green," no-chemical, no-moisture process that is capable of destroying all impurities found in a mattress. This is only possible by sanitizing both the surface and the inside of the mattress by combining a UV-C Germicidal lamp with a powerful extraction device. Indoor air quality also plays a big part in people's overall well-being and health. Pollen, animal-related allergens, dust mites and mite excrement are also a danger to asthma and hay fever sufferers, causing great discomfort. The fine dust that we breathe in while sleeping in our beds each night can disrupt an intended peaceful night's rest, trigger allergic reactions or result in symptoms such as itchy eyes, a running nose, sneezing, scratchy or irritated throat, headaches, fatigue, depression and so on. Many people mistake these symptoms for unavoidable allergic reactions, without realizing that the cause is likely the cleanliness of the environment in which they are sleeping. We don't like to think that the environment we are sleeping in is dirty, however common sense dictates that the mattress serves as a ready and willing depository for organic and inorganic impurities. In your lifetime your body will have more close contact with your bed than with any other piece of furniture and the simple truth is we all release as much as a pint of sweat each night and our bodies are permanently shedding skin. Adding these to the bacteria that is formed from the other fluids our bodies release and deposit onto the mattress. It makes you wonder why this problem has never been studied and remedied until now. You now have the choice to sleep in a healthy and sanitized environment in the comfort of your own home and there should be no excuse for you to be sleeping in an accommodation provider's mattress that has not been sanitized by a certified Hygienitech Anti-Allergen Services Provider. Recent studies have shown that exposure to house dust mite allergens is a significant risk factor for the development of allergic diseases, such as asthma and rhinitis (hay fever). According to Dr. Zeldin, of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), "Results from an earlier study suggest that over 45% of U.S. homes, or approximately 44 million dwellings, have bedding with dust mite allergen concentrations that exceed a level that has been associated with allergic sensitization. We estimated that 22 million homes have bedding with dust mite allergen concentrations at a level that can trigger asthma in susceptible people. So we were eager to test ways to reduce these troublesome substances." According to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI), dust mites are the #2 cause of allergy problems (topped only by Pollen). There are likely millions of them in your home. We shed 10,000 million scales of bacteria laden skin each day, most end up in our mattresses. Dust mites produce 200 times it's body weight in excrement during their normal life span. Dust mites feast for up to 170 days on our shed skin. Dust mites spread rapidly. A female dust mite lays 300 eggs. They can live without food for up to a year. Apr 24  State could become the first to require recycling of mattresses May 2, 2012 By Jan Ellen Spiegel Legislation that would make Connecticut the first state to require the recycling of used mattresses appears destined for a vote in the General Assembly. The bill uses an environmental model called extended producer responsibility, EPR, a principle of the broader concept of product stewardship, in which producers take responsibility for reducing their products' environmental impact. Under EPR, producers assume stewardship of design qualities and/or systems related to a product's safe disposal at the end of its life. In addition to environmental advantages, EPR is seen as a way to ease the financial burden on government to provide certain services -- like getting rid of old mattresses -- and as pushing manufacturers to be more environmentally conscious in product and packaging development. The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection estimates that 176,000 mattresses a year are disposed of through municipal waste streams at a cost to taxpayers of about $1.2 million. An equal amount is handled through mattress retailers. But mattresses are 90 percent to 95 percent recyclable. The wood in box springs can be chipped for mulch; springs and metal can be reused in other furniture pieces; foam is often shredded and remixed for carpet padding; cotton, felt and plastic have multiple re-uses. State officials see it -- along with electronic waste and paint recycling -- as a way to increase the state's anemic recycling rate. "I think we're really doing a good thing in Connecticut," said Sen. Ed Meyer, D-Guilford, co-chairman of the Environment Committee, which sponsored the various bills. "We're establishing a track record recycling difficult products." But in the case of mattresses, the consumer will pay. The legislation requires mattress producers to form a council to come up with a statewide mattress stewardship plan by July 2013 for review and approval by the DEEP commissioner. The plan, in addition to collection, transport and disposal, will include a fee structure tied to the purchase of mattresses to pay for everything. Originally the fee was to be collected by producers, but new language negotiated after protests by the mattress industry places collection of the fee on retailers. "The fee was ultimately going to go the consumer regardless of whether it goes through the producer or retailer," Meyer said. But now retailers are less than thrilled. "We're not crazy about it," said Tim Phelan, president of the Connecticut Retail Merchants Association, who was involved in talks that determined the bill's final wording. "As an industry we appreciate the fact that members of the legislature involved in this have given us a chance to have input on the bill. "But we won't be doing jumping jacks. We're the ones that have to deal with customers; we're the ones that have to collect the fees, and we're the ones that have to battle with online retailers," he said. That last point -- how online retailers would fit into the program -- is unclear; there's no specific language in the bill, though some involved in the negotiations said there is nothing to prevent them from being included in fee collection requirements. The International Sleep Products Association, which represents mattress manufacturers and their suppliers, declined to comment for this story. But in its lengthy opposition testimony to the original legislation cited online competition concerns along with increased costs that would further hurt an industry already suffering in a difficult economy. "The industry would like a federal solution; we would love a federal solution also," said Scott Cassel, chief executive officer and founder of the Boston-based Product Stewardship Institute, which has been working with mattress recycling proponents in Connecticut. "But usually you don't go for a federal solution without trying these out. They have had numerous, numerous opportunities to discuss this with our group." Cassel and other mattress recycling proponents said that if the mattress industry had come to the table to work out a stewardship plan, the legislative route could have been avoided. The sleep products association has already helped kill mattress recycling legislation in Rhode Island, though a new effort is under way, and it is fighting a measure in California. Connecticut's mattress movement was largely spearheaded by Hartford through the efforts of Marilynn Cruz-Aponte, the city's assistant to the director of public works, after a sticker shock moment. With landfills closed a few years ago, and mattresses unsuitable for burning in trash-to-energy facilities because their components tend to get stuck in the machinery, Cruz-Aponte was faced with a $40 per unit cost of disposal. She remembers her reaction to that first quarterly bill of $109,000 just for mattresses. "'Oh God; oh MY God; this is one quarter,'" she remembers thinking. "We had to collect with public works crews and spend money there; store it at the landfill in trucks and spend money there; truck it over and then spend money on the tipping fee. "If it was impacting our budget, it must be impacting other people's budget," she said. Cruz-Aponte convinced Mayor Pedro Segarra that finding a better way to dispose of mattresses was in the city and state's best interest. Their work led to the current legislation. - Despite Opposition, Mattress Recycling Bill Clears Hurdle Submitted by Recycling News on April 24, 2012 - 09:00. More and more communities are experiencing an increased number of illegally dumped mattresses, especially given the foreclosure crisis resulting from the recent recession.  This poses significant environmental, economic and social impacts throughout the state. In order to address illegal dumping of mattresses, Senator Hancock has introduced a bill that would require manufacturers to be responsible for collection and recycling of used mattresses. SB 1118 (Hancock) would require mattress manufacturers and retailers to take back mattresses for free. Both mattress manufacturers and retailers would be permitted to incorporate an additional charge into the purchase price of new mattresses in order to offset the costs of these recovery programs. Or, in lieu of establishing a “take back” program, a mattress manufacturer may remit a payment of $25 per mattress sold to CalRecycle, a state agency. CalRecycle would then use the resulting revenue to create a program to recover and recycle used mattresses. Mattress trade representative was there in opposition to the bill, and CAW was there in support. It got out of Senate Environmental Quality Committee 5-1 and will head to fiscal committee.   ISPA continues to fight EPR bills in states April 26, 2012 1:25 pm The International Sleep Products Association opposes state-level legislation that would require mattress manufacturers to establish and pay for extended producer responsibility programs to recycle used mattresses. And the association recently took action in two states that are considering such mattress recycling laws: Connecticut and California. On April 17, supporters of an EPR bill for mattresses in Connecticut announced their intent to rush the legislation to the Senate floor for a vote the following day, said Chris Hudgins, ISPA vice president of government relations. Learning of this effort, ISPA mobilized an ISPA member who lives in the state, as well as the state’s retailer trade association and, together, they persuaded lawmakers to drop the bill from the agenda for the day. Supporters of the Connecticut bill are maintaining pressure and have stated that they intend to pass the legislation this year, Hudgins said. ISPA has met with bill supporters several times, explaining the industry’s opposition to the legislation and has proposed alternatives that would minimize the impact of the bill on mattress manufacturers, retailers and consumers, if it is, in fact, enacted. The Connecticut legislature adjourns May 9. On April 23, the California Senate Environmental Quality Committee held a hearing on EPR legislation for mattresses. Hudgins testified in opposition to the bill (read ISPA’s statement), while proponents cited the prevalence of illegally dumped mattresses in Oakland as a primary need for the legislation. Following the hearing, the committee voted 5-1 to advance the bill. At this time, Hudgins said, it appears that the bill will be considered by one or more other Senate committees. ISPA members or other manufacturers, suppliers or retailers in the mattress industry who are interested in supporting the association’s efforts against EPR legislation in Connecticut and California should contact Hudgins at chudgins@sleepproducts.org or call 703-683-8371. While ISPA opposes state-by-state bills because they can impose unnecessary costs and bureaucracy on the mattress industry, it has proposed federal legislation, the Used Mattress Recycling Act, to help create a national program for recycling used mattress parts. The Used Mattress Recycling Act would establish a national mattress recycling system that would be an industry-led, efficient solution to the challenge of recycling used mattresses. Rhode Island mattress recycling bill defeated  Share | July 13 -- Opposition from the International Sleep Products Association (ISPA) and other manufacturing groups meant that a Rhode Island bill that would have required mattress manufacturers and retailers operating there to participate in an ´extended producer responsibility´ (EPR) program was not passed. EPR programs make manufacturers responsible for funding and operating a system for collecting and disposing of consumer products at the end of their useful lives. Rhode Island would have required the mattress industry to develop such an EPR program specifically for mattresses discarded in that state. "This is a significant victory for our industry," noted ISPA president Ryan Trainer, in a statement. "ISPA supports efforts to promote the proper disposal of used mattresses, but the Rhode Island legislation would have set a bad precedent. ISPA believes that used mattress recycling efforts must develop and evolve on their own without the interference of costly and impractical state mandates." ISPA provided testimony opposing the bill and met with influential legislators and agency staff to educate them on the economic harm that legislation like this would have caused mattress manufacturers and retailers. To help defeat the legislation, ISPA also enlisted the assistance of its members, mattress retailers and other industries that manufacture consumer products targeted by EPR efforts like this in other states. Ohio Mattress Recycling contracts 16 hotels in the Boston Area Scheduled to take place in April. March 8-2011 Ohio Mattress Will beat any Compeitors Pricing!!   Ohio Mattress Recycling is proud to announce our negotiations for a United States Department of Defense contract.               Governement recycling for a price much cheaper than sending the materials to waste management Recycle your Mattress Last month, the question of what to do with an old bed came up for a sad—make that terrible—reason. My elderly mother, who not so long ago was bossing everyone around as befits someone who led a national organization in her prime, had suddenly become so weak that she needed a hospital bed. It was to be delivered in two days' time. To make room, we needed to get rid of the old bed ASAP. The question was how. I was readying myself for a weekend of research when I learned that my mother's home aide could use the bed. It was good luck all around. I decided to do my research anyway because responsibly disposing of a used bed—or more often a mattress—is a problem many people face. Needless to say, it would not be responsible to send a mattress to the landfill. Either it is in good condition, in which case it ought to be passed on to someone who needs it, or in bad condition, in which case it should be recycled. The materials will be turned into new products, keeping new resources from being used unnecessarily. Besides, mattresses are a problem for landfills. They can't be compressed the way most other things can so they take up a huge amount of space, and their metal springs clog the landfill machinery. In addition, conventional mattresses—like everything else nowadays—are made with toxic chemicals that can leach into groundwater from the landfill. We don't want flame retardants and other poisons seeping into our drinking water. But what's the alternative? Mattresses aren't donated easily. Many thrift stores and organizations are concerned they may be infested with bed bugs or simply unclean. So, prepare yourself to make more than one call. If your mattress is in great condition, begin your search close to home: Ask family, friends, neighbors and employees if they or someone they know could use a good mattress. Ask places of worship (yours or others) if there are congregants in need. Contact a local homeless shelter, battered women's shelter or refugee resettlement program to see if they would want the mattress.   Benefits to Society by recycling mattresses While brain storming can be a lot of fun, it also has great value when pursued through to an action plan where the group or others can take these thoughts and turn them into implementation tasks.  How do you do that?  When the brainstorming is over, you prioritize your list.  Delete trivial items.  Then you create your action plan by assigning a date or range of dates when the item identified in the brain storming (task) will be completed and who is responsible for getting it done.   By actually following this action plan and checking to make sure tasks get accomplished and done on time – you can achieve mattress recycling in your community. Give it a go.  See what society benefits you can add to the below list, then turn your list into your action plan.  The environment thanks you in advance.    1.  Save landfill space.  2.  No more landfill equipment problems from mattress springs.  3.  Create new jobs.  4.  Cleaner roadsides.  5.  No illegal mattress dumps.  6.  Recycled steel for construction.  7.  Know you did the right thing.  8.  Cotton for linen papers.  9.  Cotton for oil spill cleanup containment. 10.  Foam for many uses. 11.  Felt for mattress pads. 12.  Felt for carpet pads. 13.  Dimensional lumber. 14.  Pelletized wood for fuel. 15.  Chipped wood for mulch. 16.  Less supply of old mattresses increasing value of good used mattresses. 17.  Less supply of old mattresses creating higher demand for new mattresses. 18.  Save cities tax money via elimination of their handling discarded mattresses with no fee. 19.  Occupies one more empty warehouse or factory.      20.  Can generate income for cities/trash haulers with curbside pickup fees using vouchers/tags. 21.  Can be a source for rebuilt mattresses. 22.  Ticking and foam for pet bedding. 23.  Wood crates. 24.  That which gets rewarded gets done. 25.  Cardboard - corrugated - recycling. 26.  More space in your house/garage. 27.  No need to delay purchase of new as you can get rid of the old. 28.  No need for storage rental. 29.  Keeps mama happy. 30.  Why foam only in prisons? 31.  Cleaner environment. 32.  Stop wasting valuable resources. 33.  etc. If you see something on the list you want to delete - go ahead.  If you know a benefit that is missing from the list - add it.  If you want to clarify an entry - do it.  When you are done, you have your own list of society's benefits of mattress recycling in your community.   New AASHE Business Member   Ohio Mattress Recovery and Recycling Deepens Commitment to Sustainability   Ohio Mattress Recovery has recently become a member of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, an association of colleges and universities working to create a sustainable world.  Through its membership in AASHE, Ohio Mattress will be able to better understand and assist higher education institutions in advancing their sustainability initiatives.     AASHE enables colleges and universities to meet their sustainability goals by providing specialized resources, professional development, and a network for sharing information about sustainability products and services.  Membership covers the entire business or campus, so everyone can take advantage of event discounts, access to member-only resources, and other benefits.   “We are delighted to have Ohio Mattress  on board and participating in the campus sustainability community,” said Paul Rowland, executive director of AASHE. “Their involvement in AASHE demonstrates a commitment to working with higher education to create a just and sustainable future for all.”   Among AASHE’s major programs is the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS), which provides higher education with a standardized, comprehensive self-assessment instrument.   STARS metrics cover every sector of campus, from planning and administration to operations, to education and research.  With STARS as a roadmap or guide, institutions can select meaningful and appropriate pathways to sustainability while conserving valuable resources, mitigating global warming, and building healthier communities.   Another major program that AASHE supports is the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment.  Over 650 presidents and chancellors to date have signed this commitment and are leading their institutions to climate neutrality as soon as possible.  AASHE hosts the climate action reporting tool for the ACUPCC.   AASHE provides many of its resources free to the public, including a weekly newsletter, AASHE Bulletin, and a set of Campus Sustainability Discussion Forums on nearly 20 different topics.  These can all be found in AASHE’s online Resource Center.   About AASHE AASHE is an association of colleges and universities that are working to create a sustainable future. Its mission is to empower higher education to lead the sustainability transformation. It does this by providing resources, professional development, and a network of support to enable institutions of higher education to model and advance sustainability in everything they do, from governance and operations to education and research.   AASHE defines sustainability in an inclusive way, encompassing human and ecological health, social justice, secure livelihoods, and a better world for all generations.  AASHE is a member-driven, independent 501(c)(3).    Posted: August 5, 2009

Old mattresses from residence halls are being recycled.

Area native springs into mattress recycling

Published: Friday, February 6, 2009

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Here's something to sleep on tonight: In just one day at a local landfill, more than 300 old mattresses and box springs arrive for burial...

By Tom Watson

Special to The Seattle Times

 PREV   of  NEXT

 

Kristopher Lee / The Seattle Times

U.K. Prison Experiments With Mattress Recycling

by Amanda Wills

Last week, The Guardian reported that the U.K. government is stepping up its recycling efforts and coming up with innovative ideas for discarded prison mattresses. Prisons throughout England and Wales throw out 50,000 mattresses each year and order 60,000 new mattresses due to prison population growth, costing taxpayers 2 million pounds, or 2.8 million U.S. dollars.

Discarded mattresses take up to 23 cubic feet of space in landfills. Photo: Flickr/hateme20

County jails will be signing contracts with companies to convert these mattresses into new products. The goal is to reduce the wasted mattresses from 50,000 to zero.

Two companies are conducting trials to convert stained and lumpy mattresses into carpet underlay, roof tiles and fence panels.

The new idea is a part of the Whitehall plan to recycle waste and save taxpayer cash. The mattress recycling proposal is highlighted in a report surveying Whitehall’s innovation, which says that Whitehall has allotted 5.5 billion pounds, or 7.8 billion U.S. dollars, for experimentation.

Discarded mattresses are a huge problem in landfills—literally. A single mattress can take up to 23 cubic feet of space, driving U.S. legislation for mattress recycling such as holding manufacturers to higher environmental standards.

Some retailers and charities still sell and donate used mattresses to lower income families. Phoenix-based Sleep America has been very supportive of alternative methods of disposing of mattresses.

Amanda Wills

Amanda Wills is the Assistant Editor of Earth911.com

More articles by Amanda

Ohio Mattress Recovery and Recycling prevented 1,500,000 pounds of mattresses from entering the landfill this year, We hope to reach our Goal of three thousand mattresses in 2011.

 Ohio Mattress Recovery and Recycling to present at PROP convention July 28th in Scranton Pennsylvania.

Check out the link at:

http://www.proprecycles.org/2009%20PROP%20Conference.html

What's In A Mattress?

This article is intended to answer your question about "What is in a mattress to be recycled?"

What's In A Mattress - Understanding What Your Mattress Is Made Of
By Marc Ilgen

There are many important components within a mattress which make it supportive, comfortable and most importantly durable. There are several types of mattresses available today and of course each one is built slightly differently but generally the basic components are the same. It is a good idea to understand what's inside a mattress so you know exactly what you're getting when you buy a new one.

The innerspring mattress is the most popular and most common type of mattress. It is built with both simple and intricate inner workings to create the comfort and durability this type of mattress possesses. You will find that the innerspring mattresses are created with coils but there are many different types of coils available for mattress use and each one creates a different feel. Whether you are looking for a firm or a soft mattress, companies and manufacturers today have utilized the proper coils to ensure that they have created mattresses that fit each and every preference.

The Bonnell coils are quite literally the oldest type of coils that exist today and they are generally not used on the new mattresses. Marshall Coils are used by Simmons Beauty Rest and they are very successful when used within their innerspring creations. The coils are measured in increments and the lower the number the thicker the coils. Generally, the higher quality innerspring mattresses use coils of a 1.63 mm diameter. The connections between the coils are what help the mattress to keep its shape through the years and the many nights of tossing and turning.

Foam mattresses are the next popular and becoming more and more common in the world of mattresses. These foam mattresses use latex or memory foam instead of coils to create the comfort and support. It is important to take note that foam can run from low to high qualities and this means that there can be a large difference in price when you are searching for a memory foam bed. You can find a memory foam bed with absolutely any name brand manufacturer today.

Not only is it important to know how your mattress is made and what materials are used during its creation but it is important to pay attention to the foundation and base for your mattress as well. Although many people tend to neglect this detail, it is a detail which can determine how well the mattress feels when you lie on it. There are three different types of foundations and of course the most popular and common is the box-spring. This is a rigid frame which contains heavy duty springs to contribute to the support of the mattress and maintain a longer durability. When you are using a memory foam mattress it is a necessity to have a strong foundation or you will find that your foam mattress does not feel as comfortable as it did in the store.

The core of the mattress is the most important part of the mattress. This is where the comfort and support layers are and they are required to blend together in order to feel the overall comfort this mattress is prepared to provide. The core holds the coils, foam or latex as well as all the comfort layers and if the core is not well constructed and strong than the mattress itself will not be comfortable and it will certainly not be durable.

How a mattress is made may not seem at first to be something the average consumer needs to worry about, but in fact it does make a difference in how well you are able to choose a good mattress. Of course each manufacturer creates their mattresses in a unique way but the general process is one that does not vary that much. Each mattress requires a strong and flexible core of comfort levels and without this you will find your mattress becoming uncomfortable sooner than you had hoped.

Marc Ilgen is an internet entrepreneur and article writer. He runs a website called http://www.Best-Mattress-Buying-Guide.com to help people find information about buying a mattress. He also has an online store for mattresses and bedding supplies.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Marc_Ilgen
http://EzineArticles.com/?Whats-In-A-Mattress---Understanding-What-Your-Mattress-Is-Made-Of&id=744554

Boom in tiny bedbugs is causing big trouble

Play Video KVUE-TV Austin –Residents complain about bed bug infestation By Barbara Barrett, McClatchy Newspapers Barbara Barrett, Mcclatchy Newspapers – FriMay15, 5:50pmET

WASHINGTON — The biggest bedbug outbreak since World War II has sent a collective shudder among apartment dwellers, college students and business travelers across the nation.

The bugs — reddish brown, flat and about the size of a grain of rice — suck human blood. They resist many pesticides and spread quickly in certain mattress-heavy buildings, such as hotels, dormitories and apartment complexes.

Two shelters have closed temporarily in Charlotte, N.C. , because of bedbugs, a Yahoo chat group dedicates itself to sufferers and countless bedbug blogs provide forums for news, tips and commiseration. State inspectors say that more emphasis may be needed to tackle the creatures.

Federal officials have taken notice of the resurgence. Last month, the Environmental Protection Agency held its first-ever bedbug summit, and now a North Carolina congressman wants to take on the insect.

Democratic Rep. G.K. Butterfield just introduced legislation that would authorize $50 million that's already in the Department of Commerce budget to train health inspectors how to recognize signs of the insects.

The Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite Act of 2009 also would require public housing agencies to submit bedbug inspection plans to the federal government. It would add bedbugs to a rodent and cockroach program in the Department of Health and Human Services . It also would require the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to research bedbugs' impact on public mental health.

Butterfield's letter to congressional colleagues about the legislation attracted lots of attention: It was topped with a full-color picture of the insect sitting on human skin.

"Unfortunately, in recent years, the United States has seen a resurgence in bedbugs," the letter reads. "That's right — they're back in the sack — and biting."

Bedbugs have hit hotels and homes in every state. The creatures are amazing hitchhikers, experts say, and easily travel in suitcases, boxes or packages. They can live for up to a year without food.

Apparently no state has a central reporting system for bedbugs, according to Butterfield's office, and since the bug carries no known diseases, many health departments don't consider it a public health threat.

That leaves the critters falling through the cracks among regulators, said Michael Potter , an entomologist at the University of Kentucky and one of the country's bedbug experts.

"Most health departments say, 'Hey, we don't deal with bedbugs,' " Potter said.

Those who've suffered outbreaks say that the anxiety it induces can be debilitating. Potter said many sufferers tossed out furniture and could spend thousands of dollars on repeated treatments from pesticide companies. They call him about anxiety, insomnia, shame and the incessant annoyance of itchy red welts on their skin.

"They're, like, ready to blow their brains out," Potter said. "It's emotionally distressing. Anyone that has never had a bedbug problem is not one to judge whether we're dealing with a medical, emotional public health issue."

In Congress , Butterfield first introduced his bill a year ago after hearing from a constituent who'd brought bedbugs into her home from a hotel trip. The bill died in committee last year, but Butterfield aides say they hope that higher attention will help the measure this year.

The co-sponsors include Reps. Don Young , R- Alaska , Ben Chandler , D- Ky. , Bobby L. Rush , D- Ill. , Betty McCollum , D- Minn. , Corrine Brown , D- Fla. , Steve Cohen , D- Tenn. , Brad Miller , D- N.C. , and Eddie Bernice Johnson , D- Texas .

Butterfield also has received support from the National Pest Management Association , which says that bedbug calls to pest control companies are up 70 percent in the past five years.

Greg Baumann , a Raleigh, N.C. , pest control expert and the vice president of technical services for the National Pest Management Association , said that a decade ago few pest control companies dealt routinely with bedbugs.

"Now it's everyone today," he said.

Baumann said companies could use pesticides on the bugs but that they also tried such alternatives as extreme heat, freezing and isolating the insects through mattress covers.

Since the EPA restricted the use of several effective pesticides in the 1980s, bedbugs have built resistance to the chemicals that now are on the market, said Potter, the University of Kentucky entomologist. Public education is important, he said, but the industry also needs a good insecticide.

"Whether that bill is going to solve the problem — certainly it's a start," he said.

MORE FROM MCCLATCHY

News- Herald Coverage of Ohio mattress Recovery and Recycling

http://www.news-herald.com/articles/2009/02/05/news/nh417261.txt

New Company Works to Keep Mattresses Out of Landfill

Each year 300,000 mattresses are sent to Cleveland area landfills. Since 94 percent of all mattresses and box springs are recyclable, something has to be done to encourage the recycling of these products. Fortunately, Chuck Brickman, a native Northeast Ohioan, is taking on this feat and has started a business, Ohio Mattress Recovery and Recycling, to develop a plan to recycle mattresses in Ohio. Read more from EarthWatchOhio

Sagging Mattress Recycling

One of the bigger things we throw away are old mattresses. Landfills are stuffed full of them. Julie Grant reports that new companies are springing up to recycle the steel and cushioning from old mattresses. They say the government could help, but it's lying down on the job: Read more and Listen at EnvironmentReport

Thinking of sending a mattress to a landfill? Sleep on it

Here's something to sleep on tonight: In just one day at a local landfill, more than 300 old mattresses and box springs arrive for burial...

By Tom Watson

Special to The Seattle Times

Kristopher Lee / The Seattle Times

Here's something to sleep on tonight: In just one day at a local landfill, more than 300 old mattresses and box springs arrive for burial. If you laid them out end-to-end, they would stretch more than a third of a mile. And that's just from one day.

Why should you care? Because, as sleepers, we all contribute to this disposal problem.

Old mattresses don't go away easily. Mattresses are bulky, generally not reusable, and difficult to recycle. Even putting them in a landfill doesn't work well.

But there are solutions, and that's where you come in.

The final resting place

Since most retailers will take your old mattress when you buy a new one, retailers haul truckloads of mattresses directly to King County's Cedar Hills Landfill in Maple Valley. The mattresses also come to the landfill from King County's solid waste transfer stations, brought in by residents and businesses.

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Landfill equipment operators hate mattresses. Driving giant bulldozer-type machines, their goal is to pack the garbage down tightly before it is covered. But mattresses don't compact well. Even worse, the mattress springs pop out and get tangled in the equipment, often damaging it. Cedar Hills Landfill operations supervisor Dean Voelker calls this "a huge problem."

Because mattresses are so difficult to handle, landfills around the nation have increased the fees they charge to accept mattresses, especially in large quantities. King County will soon begin classifying bulk loads of mattresses as "special waste," which is charged a higher fee.

Dreams of recycling

Even the adage "Reduce, reuse, recycle" doesn't really apply to mattresses. It's hard to reduce the quantities of mattresses being used and disposed of, although if more people coupled up, I guess that would help.

And most people have no interest in buying a used mattress. Retailers do donate some lightly-used mattresses to charities, but most charities do not accept old mattresses from the public.

That leaves recycling. Manufacturers construct mattresses very tightly so they won't come apart easily, which is great, until you try to recycle them. To separate the components for recycling, mattresses can be "filleted" (an actual industry term) manually with a box-cutter, which takes a fair amount of time and energy. Or they can be shredded, which requires expensive equipment.

A standard mattress and box spring consist primarily of steel, polyurethane foam, cotton and other fabric, and wood. Good recycling markets usually exist for the steel, and markets could also likely be found for the foam. Because of the condition of the fabric and wood that comes out of old mattresses and box springs, those materials currently have few reliable markets.

The value of the recycled materials alone will not cover the costs of mattress recycling. However, mattress recycling may make sense financially as an alternative to landfills, if you take into account the true costs of landfilling, according to a report by the International Sleep Products Association's Mattress Disposal Task Force.

A few mattress recycling operations have started up in recent years in Massachusetts, Minnesota and the San Francisco Bay Area. But the task force report and other industry-supported research suggest that mattress recycling will not flourish until a funding mechanism is developed.

What you can do

When local governments have to spend more money to deal with mattresses than other types of garbage, we all pay for those extra costs. So what can we, as consumers, do to help solve the mattress disposal problem, and to reduce the environmental impacts of mattresses?

• Support industry and government actions to address the disposal issue. If these efforts someday result in a small "advance recycling fee" when you buy a mattress — a system used for other problem items such as tires and car batteries — think of it as money well spent.

• In the meantime, when you buy a new mattress, consider mattresses made with fewer petroleum products and toxic chemicals. It's always good to use less of those, and keep them out of the landfill. Search online for "green mattresses" or "organic mattresses."

• Extend the life of your mattress by maintaining it well. Many manufacturers and retailers recommend that you rotate and flip a new mattress every two weeks for the first six months, then every three months after that. Don't bend a new mattress or jump on it, and never allow a mattress to get wet.

You'll sleep better knowing that you're taking care of your mattress, and the planet.

Tom Watson writes the EcoConsumer column for digs on Saturdays. He is project manager for King County's Recycling and Environmental Services. Reach him at tom.watson@metrokc.gov or 206-296-4481. Watch for more EcoConsumer resources from King County at www.KCecoconsumer.com.

Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company

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