Good News and Bad News about Acrylic Paints

Douglas Flandro

Sustainability Design Leader, Exhibit Designer, Associate

CambridgeSeven

LEEDuser Premium Member

9 thumbs up

December 13, 2023

I was shocked to see this new research. Bad news is that acrylic paints are causing 58% of the microplastics pollution in our ocean. Yes, they are plastic. A recent study by Environmental Action, a Swiss-based scientific research firm, shows us that acrylic paint's role in plastic pollution is much greater than most of us realize. The good news is that there are many tried and true alternatives that are healthier and more durable. Consider using mineral, clay, and plant-based alternatives like Romabio, Keim Paints, or Real Milk Paint Co.

https://architizer.com/blog/practice/materials/microplastic-plastic-paint-alternatives/"

The Healthy Materials Lab at Parsons has done a lot of good research:

Healthy Materials Lab | Interior Paints

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Simona Fischer

Director of Sustainable Practice and Associate

MSR Design

LEEDuser Basic Member

0 thumbs up

Wed, 12/13/2023 - 20:15

Thanks for sharing this research, Douglas. I just wanted to add one note - when we pressed Romabio for transparency a couple years ago, they admitted that while Romabio paints are partially mineral based, they also do contain plastic as well (latex, i.e. PVC microplastic, I believe it was). Unless we have updated transparency docs we should be careful of Romabio. However, KEIM, Graphenstone Ecosphere, and BEECK make true mineral paints. On Wed, Dec 13, 2023 at 11:22 AM Douglas Flandro wrote: