In an effort to divert some of the 16,000 mattresses a year disposed of in the regional landfill, the Development Authority of the North Country and St. Lawrence County have teamed up to launch a mattress recycling program.

This comes after a successful mattress recycling pilot program was implemented in Lewis County last year.

Beginning immediately, St. Lawrence County residents, businesses and haulers taking mattresses or box springs to the St. Lawrence County transfer stations in Gouverneur, Ogdensburg or Massena, will separate those items from the rest of their waste and take them to the designated trailer at the transfer station where they will be stacked inside.

They should be kept dry.

Once full, the trailer will be transported to Tonawanda by a recycling company.

At the recycling facility, mattresses are taken apart by hand. The steel is recycled, the wood is chipped and the foam is made into carpet padding.

St. Lawrence County will still charge by weight for mattress disposal, and the Development Authority will subsidize the rest of the cost of recycling the mattresses and transportation.