https://www.americancityandcounty.com/wp-content/themes/acc_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcast
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Events
    • How to Contribute
    • Municipal Cost Index – Archive
    • Equipment Watch Page
    • American City & County Awards
  • Magazine
    • Back
    • Digital Editions
    • Reprints & Reuse
    • Advertise
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Privacy Statement
    • Terms of Service
American City and County
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcasts
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Events
    • How to Contribute
    • American City & County Awards
    • Municipal Cost Index
    • Equipment Watch Page
  • Magazine
    • Back
    • Digital Editions
    • Reprints & Reuse
    • Subscribe to GovPro
    • Manage GovPro Subscription
    • Advertise
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Stament
    • Terms of Service
  • newsletter
  • Administration
  • Economy & Finance
  • Procurement
  • Public Safety
  • Public Works & Utilities
  • Smart Cities & Technology
acc.com

Public Works & Utilities


County keeps waste paint out of the HHW cycle

County keeps waste paint out of the HHW cycle

For years, residents of Montgomery County, Md., disposed of liquid latex paint at the county's Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) facility and, in the process,
  • Written by Beth Wade
  • 1st May 2002

For years, residents of Montgomery County, Md., disposed of liquid latex paint at the county’s Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) facility and, in the process, threw away millions of tax dollars. That changed last March, when the county’s Division of Solid Waste Services (DSWS) began distributing a hardening agent that allows residents to dispose of paint with their regular trash.

Historically, DSWS has promoted alternatives to latex paint disposal, encouraging residents to donate leftover paint to groups in need or to combine leftover paint and use it on jobs for which the final coat is not important. Nevertheless, residents have typically chosen to dispose of their paint during HHW collection events, perhaps finding it more convenient to drive up and drop off than to locate a group to take the paint.

Despite the fact that latex paint is not hazardous, the county had no choice but to collect it through its HHW program, says Richard Dimont, DSWS’s program manager for hazardous waste and waste reduction. “It was quite a messy proposition for any residential collectors to take liquid latex paint,” he explains. “There was no other real venue for [people] to get rid of the paint.”

So the HHW facility accepted the latex paint and, by last year, was paying close to $3.25 per can to get rid of it. “I liken it to going to the emergency room for a hangnail,” Dimont says. “An emergency room is the most expensive place in the world to go for healthcare because you have so many doctors on call. Same thing with household hazardous waste. You bring me something that’s not hazardous, and I’ve got all these highly trained, highly paid individuals handling it. In fiscal year 2000, we were spending close to a quarter-million dollars, just in latex paint disposal.”

That was before Dimont found Waste Paint Hardener. The product consists of crystals that are stirred into liquid latex paint to promote drying. When the paint solidifies, it can be discarded in the resident’s regular trash.

DSWS ordered a small supply of the crystals from the manufacturer, Bio-Wash, a division of Napier Environmental, based in Delta, B.C., Canada. By June, Dimont was ordering additional supplies for distribution at collection events.

“We order about 25,000 packets per year,” Dimont notes. (A packet contains three-and-a-half ounces of crystals, enough to harden two-thirds of a gallon of liquid latex paint.) “They cost about a dollar per packet to us, and we hand them out to residents.

“The idea is to get them used to using it,” he says. “The product is available on a sporadic basis at some of the area hardware stores, but people don’t immediately think [of using it]. We’re trying to show them that, if they use this product, they will save time — they won’t have to come to Household Hazardous Waste — and they’ll be doing the environmentally correct thing.”

DSWS promotes the paint hardener by distributing literature and samples at HHW events. (The literature, as well as newspaper ads, promote all of the county’s suggested methods for paint waste reduction.) The division also has placed information about the product on its Web site (http://solidwaste.dpwt.com/wastereduction/paint.htm).

Although the county still accepts liquid latex paint during its collection events, Dimont notes a drop in the number of gallons being processed, and he attributes that change to residents’ use of the paint hardener. “It has made a difference,” he says. “We’re seeing a sharp reduction in the cubic yard boxes of paint moving out. This time last year, we collected [and disposed of] 569 cubic yard boxes of paint, 80 percent of which was latex. This year, we’re at 345 cubic yard boxes, and 80 percent of that is latex.”

Already, Dimont is seeing an impact on DSWS’s bottom line. During the first nine months of fiscal year 2002, contractor costs for HHW disposal were $263,000, while costs for the same period in fiscal year 2001 were $383,000.

Tags: Public Works & Utilities

Related


  • American City & County’s 2020 Crown Communities Awards
    Projects nominated for American City & County's annual Crown Communities Awards are judged on uniqueness, short- and long-term value to the community and effective/innovative financing.
  • 2020 Crown Communities winner: Rock Hill, S.C.'s My Ride
    Rock Hill, S.C.’s My Ride project is a great example of how a city can solve multiple issues with one innovative project. My Ride is an all-electric, fare-free, fixed-route bus system that operates within Rock Hill (pop. 75,000). Seven electric buses ferry passengers over four routes that span across major corridors in the city. The […]
  • How small cities are tackling lead service line replacement
    “We move Heaven and earth,” says Montana Birt. A transplant from Georgia, Birt is a pastor in a local church in Thorp, Wisc., the smallest of cities with a population of just more than 1,600. His more earthly endeavor, however, involves digging up and replacing lead pipes that threaten to poison his neighbors’ water in […]
  • Six tips for making sure your dispatch is doing all the right moves
    Planning, design, construction, maintenance and waste disposal are a few aspects public works departments deal with daily. It seems like a great deal of specialized work and reporting because it absolutely is. And all of it routed through a dispatch center. Without the right tools in place, a dispatcher cannot keep things running smoothly. Nor […]

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your American City and County account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • The future of transportation – leveraging smart solutions to boost user experience
  • Five reasons why city managers should put utility vehicles to work
  • Six cities share $745,000 in grants for sustainability projects
  • The uncertain future of community composting in New York City

White papers


Discover How Public Sector Officials are Monitoring and Managing Overtime in This New White Paper

22nd February 2021

How to Assemble a Successful Government Grant Proposal

5th February 2021

The Rise of Procurement’s Next Normal

5th February 2021
view all

Events


PODCAST


Young Leaders Episode 4 – Cyril Jefferson – City Councilman, High Point, North Carolina

13th October 2020

Young Leaders Episode 3 – Shannon Hardin – City Council President, Columbus, Ohio

27th July 2020

Young Leaders Episode 2 – Christian Williams – Development Services Planner, Goodyear, Ariz.

1st July 2020
view all

Twitter


AmerCityCounty

2020 Crown Communities winner: El Paso County, Texas’ pretrial justice modernization dlvr.it/Rv4GKL

6th March 2021
AmerCityCounty

A city’s innovative downtown master plan sees future in local, inclusive placemaking dlvr.it/Rv3SfM

5th March 2021
AmerCityCounty

2020 Crown Communities winner: Gainesville, Fla. closes Dignity Village and houses its homeless population dlvr.it/Rv1GS2

5th March 2021
AmerCityCounty

2020 Crown Communities Winner: South Bay Cities Council of Governments’ South Bay Fiber Network dlvr.it/Rv10b7

5th March 2021
AmerCityCounty

Senate American Rescue Plan includes more than $60 million in direct aid for counties dlvr.it/RtzvBK

4th March 2021
AmerCityCounty

ASCE releases 2021 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure dlvr.it/Rtvck5

3rd March 2021
AmerCityCounty

Updating the assessor report: A new approach dlvr.it/RttvDv

3rd March 2021
AmerCityCounty

2020 Crown Communities winner: Phases 2 and 3 of Minot, N.D.’s Mouse River Enhanced Flood Protection Plan dlvr.it/RtrWMC

3rd March 2021

Newsletters

Sign up for American City & County’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about local governments.

Resale Insights Dashboard

The Resale Insights Dashboard provides model-level data for the entire used equipment market to help you save time and money.

Municipal Cost Index

Updated monthly since 1978, our exclusive Municipal Cost Index shows the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital audience? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • IWCE’s Urgent Communications
  • IWCE Expo

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

FOLLOW American City and County ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookies Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2021 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X