Introduction of a Paint Reuse Program in Stockholm, Sweden

Sammanfattning: This thesis aims to answer the question on how to introduce a paint reuse program in Stockholm, Sweden. In both the US and in the UK, paint reuse programs have been successfully introduced and are today working to create a more circular thinking about paint, how to minimize paint waste and to reuse or remanufacture paint. In the UK only, there are around 50 million litres of leftover paint, in which approximately 20 million litres could be recycled into new paint. The British Coatings Federation started investigating on how to build a more sustainable approach to paint, how to decrease the paint waste, that usually is incinerated or landfilled, by remanufacturing leftover paints into new paint. The British Coating Federation’s PaintCare started a paint reuse program, facilitating for paint to be remanufactured. This manual goes through all aspects of implementing a national paint reuse program and has been of great value of this thesis. Before implementing a paint reuse program, one must be aware of the many difficulties that comes with it. Paint is today regarded as waste, and for waste to be recycled into a new product, authorities need to grant a so-called End-of-Waste certificate, this could, due to the European Commission Waste Directive be done to waste by an approved process. One other implication when implementing a paint reuse program, or more specifically, paint remanufacturing, is to recognise the European Commission’s directive on REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) and ECHA (European Chemicals Agency). All leftover paints used in paint remanufacturing must be authorised by REACH and all the components/substances used in remanufacturing paint must be evaluated and approved by ECHA. There is a need for transparency in the paint remanufacturing, therefore samples must be taken of every batch of remanufactured paints so that the paint can be tested. Because of this, only paints manufactured in the EU can be used in remanufacturing. When considering starting a paint reuse program in Stockholm, all these aspects need to be solved. Therefore, to begin with, a public survey should be sent out to gather information about how much leftover paint could be collected in Stockholm, what the public thinks about leaving leftover paints for remanufacturing, and to evaluate if remanufactured/recycled paints would sell, if there is a market. A good starting point would be to set up a small-scale pilot plant, to sorting out/get to know the difficult aspects of staring a paint reuse program/remanufacturing to work, i.e. the supply of waste that can be collected, buy all the equipment needed for remanufacturing to work, the regulatory, and to get to know the market for remanufactured paint.