New Rochelle: Disposed Mattresses Must Be Bagged

Almost a year after the New Rochelle City Council made it a requirement to bag discarded mattresses, the city is still finding compliance is not 100 percent.

Alexander Tergis, commissioner of the Department of Public Works, said the requirement came about because of the fear of bed bugs.

"We require you bag them in some kind of mattress bag and seal it up with tape," he said.

A check of the Home Depot Web site found a mattress disposal bag for $8.

If the mattresses are not bagged, Tergis said sanitation workers are supposed to spray paint the address on them.

He said they've found mattresses dumped at other locations as a way to avoid complying with the regulation.

Tergis said the city has an alternate way of collection with their loader but it isn't always available. 

Getting the word out hasn't been easy, he said.

"At the street fair we did have a little display," Tergis said. "Every opportunity we get, we talk about it."

It is a health and safety issue, he said.

The sanitation workers accept plenty of hazards as they do their jobs, Tergis said, and they shouldn' have to worry about bringing home bed bugs.

"This is to minimize the risk to them," he said.