by Jeff Feldman

It all began simply enough. Earth pigments, ground to a fine powder, were mixed with water or rendered animal fat  to form a paste. This was the medium our cave-dwelling ancestors used to decorate  their humble abodes as much  as 40,000 years ago. From this prehistoric form of artistic expression forward, humans have used natural materials  to color, bind, and thin what, these days, comes from a can. But like so many things we take for granted in our mod-ern age, the paint we know today has traveled far from itssimple, natural beginnings.

There have been a few land-mark developments in the evolution of paint. In 1880 Sherwin-Williams perfected the formula for suspending pigment particles in a linseed oil base, giving birth to mod-ern paint. Water-based acrylic paint, commonly known as latex and at one time actu- ally containing natural latex, became widely available af-ter World War II. Lead, which had been added to paint for the durability it provided, was   banned in 1978 due to its toxicity. And only a decade agodid we tune in to the hazard of  VOCs in paints.Volatile Organic Com-pounds, VOCs, comprise a broad range of substances, both natural and synthetic, easily emitted as a gas. You’veheard the names — formalde- hyde, benzene, toluene, and many others. More important-ly though, you’ve smelled the smells—that new car smell, that just-laundered smell, and yes, that freshly painted smell.VOCs occur in paints as sol-vents, drying agents, anti-mil-dew additives, and colorants. These are off-gassed into your home’s air as the paint dries and, in some cases, for manyyears beyond. Linked to re-spiratory illnesses, kidney and liver damage, and cancer,VOCs contribute to an often overlooked, significant indoorenvironmental health issue.  The federal government now caps VOC content in paintat 250 grams per liter (g/L)for flat paints and 380 g/L for other finishes. Look for the  EPA to push for more strin-gent guidelines for 2011.

But now, no doubt spurred by the  marketplace’s newfound love of all things green, most paintmanufacturers offer both low  VOC (50 g/L or less) and zero VOC paints.John Norton of CT Walls and  Floors in Charles Town peddles Benjamin Moore paints. John is quick to point out that con-sumers need to be aware that a low or zero VOC paint basemay be higher in VOCs when tint is added. Natura, in Ben-jamin Moore’s Green Promise line of paints, remains zero VOC even after tinting. Mythic and Freshaire Choice brands  also claim zero VOCs in both  the base and the colorant.  
Mythic paints are available through independent retailers(mythicpaint.com for dealer information). Freshaire Choice is sold exclusively at Home De-pot stores. Green Seal, a non-profit de-voted to environmental stan- 
dard setting, product certifi-cation, and public education, certifies paints for low VOC levels and other factors. To  
earn Green Seal’s trademark  green checkmark, paint basesmust have VOC levels at less  than 50 g/L for flat and less   than 100 G/L for glossier fin-ishes, with no more than an-other 50 g/L for the tintingof either finish. For information on Green Seal’s productcertification programs visit GreenSeal.org.It is hard to argue with the quest to reduce VOCs forhealthier indoor air, but the paints we choose need to per-form well for their intended  purpose, not simply be “lesssmelly.” Point taken. Consum-er Reports conducted paints testing, including low VOC varietals. In the March 2009  issue, CR provides a good bal-ance on the issue of perfor-mance versus relative green-ness. Concerned consumers  can search online for perfor-mance reviews of any low or zero VOC paints. Be advised that performance, quality, and healthfulness don’t come  cheap. You will likely spend a bit extra per gallon to achieve   this paint trifecta.If you want to come full cir-cle on the issue, several lines of paint are available that go back not to cave-dwellingdays, but close. Several manu-facturers offer wall finishes  that truly link to paint’s all-natural roots, using earth pig-ments, plant-based oils and resins, milk proteins, and the like.

Check out AmericanClay.com, RealMilkPaint.com, and Livos.com as a start.  A little research goes a long way in choosing the best, healthiest paint to suit your needs. In the end, whatever blend you choose, just be sure to paint it green.Jeff Feldman runs GreenPath  Consulting, a green buildingconsulting firm. Jeff and his wife, Kristin Alexander, live in a strawbale home in BerkeleyCounty. You can reach Jeff at GreenPathConsulting@gmail.com.