Media Release

10:50 a.m.

The Alachua County Environmental Protection Department will be holding the 13th Annual Recycled Latex Paint Giveaway on Saturday, May 19, 2007. The event will distribute 2,200 gallons of 75% post consumer recycled latex paint to community organizations, civic groups, and people with special needs, and low income residents,  free of charge. 

The Recycled Latex Paint Giveaway event will take place beginning at 8 a.m. at the Alachua County Hazardous Waste Collection Center, located at the Leveda Brown Environmental Park and Transfer Station, 5125 NE 63rd Avenue, 2 miles north of 39th Avenue, off Waldo Road.  The recycled paint will be given away on a first-come, first-served basis and will be available in 5 gallon pails with five colors to choose from: off white, beige, gray, terra cotta and turquoise. There is a 10 gallon limit per resident.

“A total of  over 40,000 gallons of recycled paint has been provided to Alachua County residents since the inception of the program in 1994” said Kurt Seaburg, Hazardous Waste Coordinator for the Alachua County Environmental Protection Department. “The program began as a means of assisting homeowners and businesses to beautify their property while recycling a product that still has value,” stated Seaburg.  The cost to recycle the paint is only slightly more than the cost to dispose of the unwanted paint by a solidification process.

The latex paint is collected throughout the year by the Hazardous Waste Program and shipped to a paint manufacturer where it is blended and repackaged into a 75% post consumer paint and is suitable for either interior or exterior usage.

Residents not able to attend the event, may pick up non-recycled free paint of varying quality and quantity, dropped off by residents who no longer need it, year-round at  the Alachua County Hazardous Waste Collection Center’s Recycle/Reuse Area.  

Business hours: Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m. until noon.

Further information about the Recycled Latex Paint Giveaway can be obtained by calling The Alachua County Hazardous Waste Collection Center at 352-334-0440.

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