Waste Management Trends in the Paint Manufacturing Industry

T h e paint industry makes a variety of products that preserve, protect and enhance the objects to which they are applied. Although the post-consumer residuals of these products are usually labeled non-hazardous, they have often been termed “environmentally unfriendly” as has the industry responsible for creating them. With 1,400 manufacturing plants and an output of more than 1.1 billion gallons per year, the U.S. paint industry is a significant customer group for waste service vendors. In a recent study involving three paint factories, non-wastewater generation rates ranged from about 300 to 450 pounds per 1,OOO gallons of paint. In recent years, however, paint makers have reduced the toxicity and ignitability of many types of paint by curtailing the use of metallic pigments and organic solvents, and a growing trend toward recycling paint wastes has meant volume reductions as well. The paint manufacturing industry in the United States has done much to change this image in recent years. Paint makers have reduced the toxicity and ignitability of many types of paint. In addition, the industry has taken steps toward further reducing the amount of manufacturing waste it generates by recycling pre-consumer materials that have traditionally been discarded. This report introduces readers to the current state of paint manufacturing. A brief overview of the industry is followed by an examination of recent changes that have been incorporated into paint-making processes to make them more environmentally friendly. The final section reviews waste re0