The Municipality of Voorschoten Introduces a Separate Program for Mattress Recycling

Under the new regulations, residents who have a mattress picked up from their curb must pack it in a special bag. This keeps the mattress clean and dry. The recycling company can only process clean and dry mattresses.

Residents can pick up one of these bags for free. They can do so at the town hall reception desk during business hours. On Wednesdays between 12:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m., they can also pick them up at the municipality’s Field Office at Koninklijke Marinelaan 21 in Voorschoten. Having the packed mattress picked up at home costs 15 euros. Residents can schedule an appointment for this at www.voorschoten.nl/afval.

Bringing them in yourself remains free, but the mattresses must be delivered dry. On Wednesdays between 12:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m., you can drop them off at the Buitendienst at Koninklijke Marinelaan 21 in Voorschoten. You can also drop them off during the opening hours of the Avalex recycling center at Hogeboomseweg 6 in Wassenaar. Since these mattresses are not placed outside on the sidewalk, residents do not need to put them in a bag.

Measures are necessary

At the end of August, the municipality introduced a new regulation for bulky waste collection. Residents may put out a maximum of 1 cubic meter (1 meter wide, 1 meter high, 1 meter long) of bulky waste per collection. The fee for this is 25 euros.

“For residents, these measures come as an unpleasant surprise,” says Alderman Hubert Schokker. “But they’re necessary. The costs of waste disposal in Voorschoten are really getting out of hand. Moreover, we have a responsibility to our children and grandchildren to treat the environment with care. That means sorting and recycling instead of incinerating.”

Payment for bulky waste pickup postponed

The mattress regulation takes effect on January 1, 2024. The regulation requiring residents to pay 25 euros for bulky waste pickup will take effect on the same date. Alderman Schokker: “That’s three months later than we previously announced. Establishing the legal basis is taking more time than we had anticipated.”

Other steps

The regulations for mattresses and bulky waste are not the only steps being taken toward the sustainable separation and processing of waste. In June, the poster campaign “Voorschoten is Committed to Waste Separation” was launched, with a focus on organic waste and food scraps. Following the new bulky waste regulations, it’s now mattresses’ turn. Information on the “post-sorting” of plastic packaging, metal packaging, and beverage cartons (PMD) will follow later this year.

Want to know more?

With these new regulations, the municipality is implementing the 2021–2025 Raw Materials Plan, which the city council adopted at the end of 2021. For details on the plan and more information about waste, the opening hours of the Avalex recycling center, and how to make an appointment, residents can visit www.voorschoten.nl/afval. The opening hours of the town hall reception desk can be found at www.voorschoten.nl, under the “Contact” button.