RHODE ISLAND—PaintCare—the nonprofit organization that operates Rhode Island paint stewardship program—just announced through its latest annual report that more than 70,000 gallons of postconsumer (leftover) paint were collected from Rhode Island households and businesses in 2024.
Since 2014, the program has collected over 800,000 gallons of leftover paint in Rhode Island, ensuring the paint is managed according to “highest, best use,” meaning that as much paint as possible is reused, recycled back into paint, or put to some other beneficial use.
PaintCare is a nonprofit organization created by paint companies to manage leftover paint in states that have enacted paint stewardship laws. PaintCare makes it easy to recycle leftover paint, stain, and varnish by working with centrally located paint retail stores and locally managed government facilities and offering free on-site pickups to businesses, organizations, households, or anyone with 100 gallons of paint or more to recycle.
A large part of the program’s success in Rhode Island has been due to the support that PaintCare has received from participating retailers, paint professionals, the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, and households who are choosing to do their part.
Additional highlights from the 2024 Rhode Island PaintCare annual report include:
- 27 year-round drop-off sites located across Rhode Island.
- 100% of Rhode Island residents live within 15 miles of a drop-off site mainly located at hardware stores, paint stores, and household hazardous waste (HHW) facilities.
- PaintCare provided 34 large volume pickups from households and businesses.
- 82% of latex paint collected was made into recycled-content paint.
PaintCare drop-off sites accept all paint brands, regardless of when or at which store in Rhode Island it was purchased. Items that can be dropped off for recycling include most house paints, primers, stains, sealers, and clear top coatings (varnish and shellac). Find a detailed list of accepted products at www.paintcare.org/products.
While there is no charge to drop paint off for recycling, a nominal fee is added to the price of all new paint sold in Rhode Island to fund all aspects of the program.
To download photos of PaintCare, click here. For more information about the PaintCare program or to find a PaintCare drop-off site in Rhode Island visit www.paintcare.org/RI.
A one-page infographic highlights the successes from the most recent reporting period for the PaintCare program in Rhode Island (January to December 2024). Find complete annual reports on PaintCare’s program in Rhode Island at www.paintcare.org/rhode-island-official-docs/#annual-reports.
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About PaintCare in Rhode Island
PaintCare is committed to making it easy and convenient for households, businesses, and institutions to recycle 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 800,000 gallons of paint, stain, and varnish have been managed by PaintCare’s Rhode Island program since its launch in 2014. For additional information, visit www.paintcare.org.