OTTAWA, Ontario — The Canadian paint and coatings industry has been a leader in post-consumer paint recycling for more than 25 years, with the first program launched under Product Care in British Columbia in 1994. Since the Canada-wide Action Plan on Waste, initiated by the Canadian Council of Ministers on the Environment (CCME), all 10 Provinces have paint-recycling programs for most of the past 10 years under provincial legislation. “We are very pleased with the full support our manufacturer members have shown for paint recycling right across Canada,” commented Richard Tremblay of Benjamin Moore and Chair of Canadian Paint and Coatings Association (CPCA). These paint-recycling programs exist in all 10 provinces, with eight of these programs run by Product Care, including the large programs in Ontario and British Columbia. Ecopeinture and Alberta Recycling Management Authority operate the other two paint-recycling programs in Quebec and Alberta, respectively.

Under Provincial laws, paint and coatings manufacturers pay 100% of the cost of paint recycling, relieving the financial burden on municipalities and ratepayers. All these paint programs are meeting or exceeding targets for waste recovery and recycling. The manufacturers are the “obligated stewards” under these provincial programs, and without the full commitment of those companies there would be no paint recycling in Canada. To date, the total cost to paint manufacturers for all these programs across Canada since inception is approximately $450 million, $200 million of that amount in the Province of Ontario alone since 2010.

The CCME has also acknowledged the paint industry’s record of commitment to extended product stewardship. “There is only one product category that is consistently well-covered across the country by regulations with programs operating province-wide to divert materials from landfill, and that is used paint”(CCME Report 2016). In 2018 these paint programs across Canada recovered more that 28 million kilograms of leftover paint or the equivalent used to paint over 500,000 homes. That amount represents the equivalent of 300,000 homes in Ontario, the largest jurisdiction in the country. The independent paint Industry Steward Organization, Product Care, operates the largest program in Ontario. The program delivers a number of benefits, including diverting waste paint from landfills, thus reducing both environmental impact and cost; paying 100% of the costs for recycling, relieving the financial burden on municipalities and ratepayers; preserving valuable natural resources for future use; conserving energy for other purposes; and creating green jobs for Canadians.

“CPCA applauds the efforts of the paint manufacturers and their commitment to extended product stewardship right across Canada and the excellent program operations provided by the three Industry Steward Organizations to ensure the programs are run efficiently and transparently for the benefit of all Canadians and in full regulatory compliance in all jurisdictions,” said Gary LeRoux, President and CEO of CPCA.