In articles in the past I have often referred to Amazon Paint.

Amazon Paint in the Twin Cities is the company that receives latex paint from many, if not most, of the county household hazardous waste programs throughout the state. We ship it to them in 55-gallon drums. Amazon has two different uses for the paint they receive.

One of the products Amazon makes is a latex-based mix used by cement companies. Paint that is hard, chunky or questionable is mixed with ash from an industrial furnace and used as a replacement for shale rock by companies making cement. The product is preferred over shale rock because it is self-lubricating to machinery. I have visited the plant several times and observed the process that is low-tech and easy. There is such a demand for the product that Amazon Paint could expand if more paint were available.

Another use for the barrels of paint Amazon receives is to send the product through very fine filters, add color pigments and additives and sell it as “recycled paint.” For several years Amazon has marketed their paint products in 5-gallon pails and 55-gallon drums to contractors. This past year, Amazon has partnered with Ace Hardware and is now marketing their paint products through the stores in gallon cans. I talked with Dennis Raleigh at Raleigh’s Ace Hardware on North Bridge Avenue in Albert Lea, and he has stocked some of the Amazon Paint product line.

There are a variety of colors to choose from, and who knows? You may be using some of the same paint that came from our household hazardous waste collections here in Freeborn County. It is a very good quality product and a great reputation.

In 2009 our household hazardous waste program served 918 households from April through September. We held collections in 16 cities throughout the county. Our total weight for all materials collected for the season was in excess of 19 tons. All of our latex paint (about 26 barrels) was shipped to Amazon Paint for recycling. Many of the toxic chemicals and flammable materials were sent to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency contractor for disposal. Through a statewide contract negotiated by the MPCA we are able to dispose of hazardous materials at a lower cost than if we had to deal with contracting on our own. Bidders for that contract must provide the MPCA with disposal options that include recycling whenever possible.

We try to make our program accessible to residents and the 2010 program should be no exception. You can expect to find the schedule in the Community News magazine in March and in local newspapers and on the radio.

We still receive calls about electronics disposal. We are planning to offer two electronic collections for businesses again this year. The program is designed to assist businesses dispose of electronics, and we allow any county resident to participate. Collection dates will be published with the HHW schedule.

A new program for 2010 will be agriculture chemical collections. We can now accept chemicals from farmers at our scheduled HHW collections throughout the season. The requirement for ag chemicals will be that the farmer must call in advance (507) 377-5186 to register.

We need to know what chemicals, how many, the size of containers and how full so that we stock the correct lab packs. If products are not labeled and packaged correctly the Minnesota Department of Transportation will not allow us to move our collection trailer and the Minnesota Department of Agriculture would not pick them up.

In some instances we may have to make a special collection time and space in order to handle the type and size of containers. Watch for the 2010 HHW schedule for collections in your area. Give Amazon Paint a try! I think you will like it.

Randy Tuchtenhagen is the solid waste officer for Freeborn County.