Mattress reuse initiative puts Southern Aboriginal Corporation’s Steve Pinner in line for WasteSorted award

A project helping keep old mattresses out of landfill and giving families a cleaner, more sustainable option has earned Southern Aboriginal Corporation’s Steve Pinner recognition as a finalist for a major waste award.

Mr Pinner has been named a finalist in the waste champion award category at the WasteSorted Awards for his work on a mattress recycling and hire initiative through SAC.

The awards, hosted by the Waste Authority, honour people and organisations leading the way in waste avoidance, reuse, repair and recycling.

The mattress initiative was developed through a tenancy support program for Aboriginal people across the Great Southern, after concerns emerged around the cost and difficulty of disposing of unwanted mattresses, with most of them ending up in a room stacked on top of each other.

“They’ve got a dozen mattresses stacked up in the back room or out the back . . . and they can’t get rid of them, so they risk having to breach their tenancy,” he said.

“This became a problem for spreading disease and for spreading pests as well like lice, mice and cockroaches.”

Mr Pinner, SAC’s tenancy program leader, said the difficulty and expense of disposal often led people to dump the mattresses in inappropriate places, creating further issues for the wider community.

To address the problem, SAC approached Albany Regional Prison to create durable, washable mattresses that could be reused by families.

“We asked them if they could make up to 20 mattress for us that are robust, and cleanable so we can get them back and clean them for the next person,” Mr Pinner said.

“Some of those prisoners that are making these (mattresses) are actually related to people out here in the community, so it’s their families.

“They’re looking after them in a different type of way and the prison made them up for free.”

Mr Pinner said the mattresses have since been made available to the community, providing a practical alternative while reducing waste.

“We advertised them out into the community and they get used quite a bit,” he said.

“If we find someone that’s got a bunch of mattresses, we’ll talk to the City of Albany . . . and they’ll waiver the costs of those mattresses to get rid of as long as we’re supporting them and re-educating them about the mattresses.”

Mr Pinner said the project was about finding solutions that worked for the community rather than simply telling people to dispose of unwanted items.

“We try and find ways outside the box, rather than people just saying you have to get rid of that and then throw them in the bush, or getting rid of them elsewhere which stops the spread of disease,” he said.

Mr Pinner said being recognised as a finalist was a positive acknowledgement of the project.

“It’s nice to have some recognition,” he said.

Mr Pinner is up against Tony Berry from Tidy Up, Wayde Clewes from PalletON and Ibrahim Faseeh from the University of Western Australia.

Winners will be announced at the gala awards ceremony at Crown Perth on September 10.