Q: What’s happening on the Green front in paint and painting supplies?
A: “As the green movement continues to gain momentum, we will see an increased interest and demand from designers and facility managers for environmentally responsible coatings,” says Jackie Jordan, Director of Color Marketing at Sherwin-Williams. “In particular, green initiatives and products are being mandated at a local, regional and even national level, especially for corporations, commercial and government facilities.
“Advances in technology have brought a new generation of green paints to the market that not only exhibit environmentally preferable characteristics such as low- or zero-VOCs and formulations without silica, but that also offer the application and performance attributes expected in a high-quality coating.”
What’s interesting about the Green movement with regards to paint is that it is beginning to take hold in the other parts of the world. An exerpt from Envirnomental Research states “Scott Clark, University of Cincinnati (UC) and his team have found that 73 percent of consumer paint brands tested from 12 countries representing nearly half the global population exceeded current US standard of 600 parts per million (ppm) for lead in paint.” The problem is now being recognized and addressed. In conversations with people in the construction industry in India, the second most populous country in the world, they are beginning to make changes. The USGBC LEED program has taken off in India and although the certification standards for paint and coatings are not as stringent as in the United States they do include lowered VOC standards. The large multi-national companies are driving the Green initiative and it seems that wherever they go with new construction projects, they are demanding a Green focus. It appears that paint will continue to be impacted as awareness grows and consumers at all levels demand more environmentally friendly products.
Posted by George Carson | August 30, 2009, 3:11 amThank you for sharing this information. It’s also interesting that with our communications world wide, we still know very little about the goings on in other countries. I am so grateful that the green “village” is growing wider in its circle of influence and that modern commerce is a strength in the cause.
Posted by Up Close and Profitable | August 30, 2009, 12:16 pm