GreenSheen news and updates that go beyond paint recycling!


Content: 

The problem with paint containers 

National media attention 

Staff board representation 


The problem with paint containers

The issue: 

  • GreenSheen, is a private company and does not directly receive any money collected through the state’s Paint Stewardship program funded by a fee on new paint sales. 
  • The Paint Stewardship Program only funds the management of leftover paint, not the management of the metal and plastic paint containers collected through the program.  
  • The amount of containers collected increases around 10% annually. 
  • There is no money available for container reuse or recycling through the program’s existing structure. 
  • Valuable plastic paint cans and buckets are being sent to landfills because they cannot be reused or recycled within Colorado’s existing waste infrastructure.  
  • There is residual dried leftover paint in the cans and buckets that could be separated out and used to create new products if these containers were not being sent to landfills. 

Our solution: 

  • GreenSheen recently applied for and received grant funding to create a paint bucket reuse operation so buckets can simply be washed and reused. This project is underway. Funding is provided by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), Recycling Resources Economic Opportunity (RREO) Program. 
  • GreenSheen purchased industrial plastic shredders for our facilities in Washington and New York. We also used grant funding from PaintCare to purchase another shredder for our Colorado location.  
  • With these shredders, we will shred plastic containers and send the regrind back to a bucket manufacturer. Once reformed, we will purchase recycled buckets back from the manufacturer.  
  • We will also capture and recycle the leftover paint in the cans and buckets after shredding. 

Updates to come! If you have questions, please contact ewilson@greensheenpaint.com 


 National media attention 

  • Up Paint, a branded product created through the GreenSheen process, is being considered for the Time Magazine issue of 2022’s Best Inventions! We will soon find out if we are selected or not.  
  • Up Paint was also recently featured on Fast Company’s list of The Most Innovative Products of 2022.  
  • GreenSheen will soon be featured on an episode of The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation series for our eco-friendly paint and the process behind its production.  

We’re happy to see more attention on paint recycling and recycled content paint!  


Staff board representation

Brandy Moe, Director of Outreach & Program Development 

Board of Directors Vice President, Recycle Colorado, January 2023 – Present.

 


Charles Porter, VP of Sustainability & Circular Sales 

Board of Directors, New York Product Stewardship Council (NYPSC),  April 2022 – Present. 

Committee member, New York State Association for Reduction, Reuse and Recycling (NYSAR3) REUSE Committee, November 2021 – Present. 


Emily Wilson, Director of Special Projects & Circularity 

Board of Directors, Recycle Colorado, January 2020 – December 2022. 

Candidate for CDPHE Front Range Waste Diversion Board of Directors, January 2023.