Recycling by numbers

The Netherlands – Around 10 million kg of wall paint is consigned to disposal every year in the Netherlands – enough to easily fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool. As some 3.5 million kg has the potential to be recycled, leading waste management firm SITA is collaborating with the paint and printing industry to produce its first line of recycled paint.

According to SITA, roughly 20% of paint purchased is wasted by consumers and commercial enterprises. Under the new initiative, discarded paint is collected and converted into a raw material which can be used as an ingredient for the production of new wall paints sold under the brand name Evert King.

Ursa Paint of IJmuiden in the Netherlands is the first paint manufacturer to have developed recycled paint in this way, says SITA. Machiel van Westerhoven, technical director of Ursa Paint, adds: ‘As a leader in sustainable paints, we are constantly looking for materials that are less harmful to the environment. We now have the right technology to make professional wall paint from paint remnants that meet the highest standards.’

For more information, visit: www.ursapaint.nl