PaintCare New York Encourages Consumers and Businesses to Celebrate "America Recycles Day" Through Paint Stewardship

On track to reach 2 million gallons collected, PaintCare calls on the community to help reach its ambitious goal

ALBANY, N.Y., Nov. 15, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- PaintCare, the national nonprofit dedicated to convenient recycling of leftover household paint, stain, and varnish, is rapidly expanding its recycling efforts across the State of New York as it aims to achieve its collection goals. With a strong focus on increasing community awareness and encouraging active participation in recycling initiatives, the organization is now encouraging New York consumers and businesses to help it reach its next program milestone: the collection of 2 million gallons of leftover paint.

November 15^th is "America Recycles Day," a national observance designated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that addresses the importance and impact of recycling, and in celebration, PaintCare is calling on the community to visit its extensive network of paint drop-off sites and community events to ramp up recycling initiatives before the year's end. Since the program launched just over two years ago, the collective efforts of households, businesses, and municipal partners across the state have collected more than 1.8 million gallons of leftover paint, just 200,000 gallons shy of 2 million.

"We are inviting everyone to help us reach our 2-million-gallon milestone here in New York, and what better time to come together than on 'America Recycles Day,''' said Andrew Radin, New York Program Manager. "Since our launch, we've steadily grown our partner base, increased drop-off locations and enhanced education initiatives. We're making excellent progress and enthusiastic about the future of paint stewardship."

Throughout the year, PaintCare hosts community events, offers accessible year-round drop-off locations and educates consumers to make paint recycling easy and convenient for New Yorkers. The organization proudly ensures the best use of collected paint, either by giving it away, recycling it, finding another beneficial use, or properly disposing of it.

"To date, the Postconsumer Paint Collection Program and PaintCare's ongoing efforts have collected more than 1.8 million gallons of paint products known to harm the environment when improperly managed," New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Deputy Commissioner for Environmental Remediation and Materials Management Patrick Foster said. "DEC is committed to building upon New York State's nation-leading efforts to reduce waste at the source and prevent waste from heading to our landfills. All New Yorkers are encouraged to make use of the PaintCare program to help reach the two-million-gallon-milestone."

PaintCare was created by paint companies through the American Coatings Association (ACA) to help manage leftover paint in states that enact paint stewardship laws. Following New York passing its stewardship law in 2019, the organization officially expanded into the state on May 1, 2022. PaintCare now has more than 345 recycling drop-off sites in New York and has supported more than 50 community-wide paint drop-off events.

More than 98 percent of New York State households are within 15 miles of a PaintCare drop-off site. Paint retailers, hardware stores and locally managed municipal facilities have volunteered their space to help accept collections. To assist with larger volumes of paint, PaintCare offers direct pickups to businesses, organizations, and households with 100 gallons or more of leftover paint. The program is consumer-funded through a small fee applied to the purchase price of each new container of paint, but free at time of paint drop-off or pickup for recycling.

PaintCare has primarily partnered with educational institutions such as Farmingdale State College on Long Island and York College in New York City, to host its larger recycling collection events. New this year, the organization is also introducing a paint giveaway component which will provide attendees added incentive to browse collected paint and take quality paint home at no cost.

The organization prioritizes paint stewardship education and offers comprehensive resources on the best practices for paint purchasing, storage, and reuse. To encourage responsible paint use, PaintCare conducts public education campaigns promoting its "3 Simple Rules" strategy: buy only what you need, use up what you have, and recycle the rest. These rules help to reinforce that together we can reduce waste and give new life to leftover paint products.

Radin adds, "The local communities and neighborhood retailers have truly been the key to our success, and we're proud to collaborate on this environmental effort together with consumers, business leaders, as well as the retail and municipal partners who have generously offered their spaces as drop-off sites. We look forward to reaching that 2-million-gallon milestone and expanding public participation for this environmental initiative."

For a full list of accepted products, visit www.paintcare.org/products. PaintCare accepts latex and oil-based architectural paint products such as paints, sealers, stains, and varnishes. Paint must be in its original container with the manufacturer's label. No leaking, unlabeled, or empty containers will be accepted.

For more information on PaintCare New York's drop-off sites, visit www.paintcare.org/NY.

High-resolution images and videos from the PaintCare program can be downloaded HERE.

About PaintCare 

PaintCare is committed to making it easy and convenient for households and businesses to recycle postconsumer (leftover) paint in states with paint stewardship laws. A nonprofit organization created by paint companies, PaintCare sets up drop-off locations for leftover paint, arranges for recycling and proper disposal, and conducts public education. More than 70 million gallons of paint, stain, and varnish have been managed by PaintCare in 10 states and the District of Columbia. For additional information, visit www.paintcare.org, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram @WeRecyclePaint. 

Media Contacts:
Jenny LePore, [email protected]

SOURCE PaintCare