Labour Councillors in Tower Hamlets have this week launched a campaign urging residents to help them tally up the number of mattresses dumped in the borough.
Dubbed the Tower Hamlets Great Mattress Count, the project aims to build the case for the council to introduce a mattress recycling service similar to those already run in other London boroughs. A website has been set up at www.TowerHamletsMattressCount.com for residents to report dumped mattresses.
The councillors believe mattress fly-tipping has increased since charges to bulk waste collection were brought in under independent Tower Hamlets Mayor.
They point to schemes in other boroughs such as Lewisham, offering free mattress recycling for residents, which collects over 9,000 mattresses a year.
Labour’s Environment spokeswoman, Cllr Shiria Khatun, said: “To some this might not seem like an important issue but dumped mattresses are a blight on our streets and a significant cost to the taxpayer to collect. A mattress recycling scheme would not only help communities rid themselves of fly-tipped mattresses, but would also help the environment and create jobs.” Labour tabled a motion for yesterday’s council meeting calling for the Mayor to conduct a feasibility study into introducing a mattress recycling scheme.
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