Anti-tagging paint use urged

Community groups can keep painting the town grey with the PaintWise graffiti targeting scheme in Wanganui.
Resene Color Shop is working with Wanganui District Council to combat graffiti through the scheme, which encourages residents to drop off unwanted paint to be recycled.
The paint is then mixed into varying shades of grey and donated to community groups to wipe out graffiti.
Wanganui Resene Color Shop manager Rebecca Potts said the project was going full steam ahead.
The idea was for community groups to paint over the graffiti as soon as it appeared, to deter more tagging in the same area.
"It's good to get it cleaned up as soon as it has been put up.
"The opportunity to give paint to help with this is important to us," she said.
Graffiti offences in Wanganui have been dropping since July 2010. The largest percentage drop was 62 per cent between January 2011 and the same month the year before.
Wanganui District Council's graffiti team works on a budget of $117,000 per year within the community to help clean up tagging.
Community groups could help the team by applying to receive free paint through the scheme, Ms Potts said.
"We want it to go to use. It's just a matter of people applying really."
The scheme has been working effectively for the past two years, Ms Potts said.
Sometimes they received car boots full of paint at each Friday drop-off, even though technically people were only allowed to return up to 10 tins due to space constraints.
Grey Power treasurer Graham Adams applauded the downward trend in costs to ratepayers in cleaning up graffiti.
"Whatever it is that the council is doing at the moment, to all intents and purposes, seems to be working."
Grey Power would check the scheme out but not necessarily get involved, Mr Adams said.
"I'm a great one for not trying to reinvent the wheel.
"If the wheel seems to be turning then whatever they are doing is working and if that's now being helped by paint companies, we won't be getting in the way."
Resene has developed a new product, Uracryl GraffitiShield, which can be painted over normal paint on walls and fences.
It means if a fence has been tagged, graffiti cleaner can be used to remove the spray paint while leaving the paint underneath unharmed.
Good quality donated paint is also available for artists and art students who apply for the scheme.
The last Friday of every month is available for paint drop offs. Paint can be donated to Wanganui Resene Color Shop today between 2pm and 4pm.