What happens with the half-empty paint cans stacked in the corner of garages around the country? According to the Environmental Protection Agency, in the United States each year, an estimated 10 percent of sold architectural paint, or more than 750 million gallons are left unused, typically forgotten in garages. Most of this paint gets thrown in the trash, ending up in the local landfill when it could be repurposed and recycled.
Ridwell and the Habitat for Humanity Portland Region ReStores have launched new partnership to make it easier for people to keep paint out of the trash while supporting affordable homeownership. Starting July 1st 2024, Ridwell members in the Portland region will be able to donate their paint to Habitat for Humanity ReStores through their biweekly front door pickups (along with other hard-to-recycle items such as plastic film, multi-layer plastic, coffee bags and more). The paint will be sold to the public at three area ReStores and the funds generated will support local Habitat homebuilding and home repair programs across the Portland region.
About Habitat for Humanity ReStores
Since 1981, Habitat for Humanity Portland Region has brought people together to build homes, community, and strength. ReStores are home improvement stores and donation centers that generate over $5 million each year to support Habitat’s homebuilding and home repair programs in the Portland region. The Restores sell new and gently used furniture, home decor, appliances, lighting, building materials, and more at discounted prices to the public – online and at three locations in Beaverton, Gresham and Portland. The ReStores serve more than 44,000 customers and divert over 8,000 tons of reusable materials from our local landfills annually.
About Ridwell
Founded as a grassroots neighborhood recycling and reuse project in Seattle in 2018, Ridwell has helped members divert more than 290,000 pounds of paint from the landfill in its hometown market and is excited to now offer this category to Portland members. Today, Ridwell services more than 100,000 member households across eight markets and works closely with more than 200 innovative partners to accept materials not covered by traditional recycling programs. To date, Ridwell members have diverted more than 22 million pounds of trash from the landfill.
