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Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee signed into law the nation’s fourth program requiring paint manufacturers to safely manage leftover latex and oil-based paint from households and painting contractors.
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| Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chaffee signed legislation approving a leftover architectural paint management program based on the American Coatings Association’s PaintCare model. |
The legislation was supported by the paint and coatings manufacturing industry, and is the result of a “a multi-stakeholder” negotiation process facilitated by the Product Stewardship Institute (PSI).
The bill, introduced by Senate Majority Leader Dominick Ruggerio and Representative Donna Walsh, will allow the state to reduce sharply tax dollars spent on paint disposal, and will create recycling jobs and reduce waste, supporters said.
Similar laws have been enacted in Oregon, California and Connecticut in 2009, 2010 and 2011, respectively.
“With the new program established in the Paint Producer Responsibility Law, Rhode Island will have convenient options for residents to safely recycle or dispose of unwanted paint by taking it to a participating retailer or household hazardous waste program,” said state Department of Environmental Management Director Janet Coit.
“Thanks to the cooperation of the paint industry, we will be able to increase our recycling, save money for municipalities, and provide a valuable service to our citizens, all at no cost to state taxpayers.”
The legislation is modeled on the American Coatings Association’s “PaintCare” program, in which manufacturers fund the collection and management of unused architectural paints with an assessment added to the retail sale price of products.
The bill calls for the creation of a statewide leftover-paint stewardship program that would be managed by a stewardship organization.
With approval of the legislation, planning will get under way for operational aspects of the program, a process that can take as long as a year or possibly longer, PaintCare representatives say. Those operational functions can vary from state to state, with collection in some cases taking place at retail paint stores and in other cases at household hazardous waste handling sites.
A modest fee is charged on the sale of paint to pay for operation of the program, and is used to fund paint collection, reuse, recycling, and disposal. Painting contractors are able to participate in the program along with consumer paint and coatings users.
More on the Rhode Island legislation and the PaintCare program: PaintCare Rolls in R.I.
“ACA is pleased to have Rhode Island as the fourth state in the U.S. to implement the PaintCare program,” said Alison Keane, ACA vice president of government affairs. “PaintCare will provide Rhode Island residents convenient access to locations throughout the state where they can easily return unused paint for recycling and proper disposal.”
Scott Cassell, CEO of the Product Stewardship Institute, called the legislation “a great example of how government and industry can work together to turn waste into a new product, save Rhode Island taxpayers millions of dollars, and add recycling jobs.”
“It shows that regulation can stimulate innovation and increase the supply of a valuable commodity by setting a level playing field,” he said.
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