New paint scheme mixing it up

Jane Matthews, Project Manager, in Mareel where the recycled paint will be sold from and can also be dropped off.

Shetland Arts has rolled out its new paint recycling scheme.

The scheme is part of a national move to recycle unused paint to promote sustainability and creativity.

Within just a few weeks of the scheme’s implementation there have been enough donations of surplus paint to provide a stock of affordable paint for general use.

Collection points at Mareel and the SIC’s waste management centre at Gremista enable people with leftover paint to donate it to the scheme. The paints are then resold at Mareel.

This diverts the paint from entering the waste stream and provides a low-cost alternative source of paint for smaller projects at home, school or for community groups.

Jane Matthews, project manager for Shetland Arts, said this was a “win-win” situation between environment and community.

After going through a process of being checked and relabelled the pain is then resold at a rate £2 per litre. Meaning tubs of paint which have less than a litre will be priced accordingly.