Car Washing

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Most of us don't think of cars as a source of water pollution, but they can be. You can prevent water pollution by maintaining and repairing your car responsibly.

Washing vehicles and discharging wash water to the environment is a type of water pollution.

• Vehicle wash water contains oils, grease, metal (paint chips), brake dust, rust, detergents, cleaners, road salts, and other chemicals that can contaminate surface waters.
• Soaps can add ammonia, phenols, dyes, and acids to the mix. All soaps—even those labeled "biodegradable"—contain surfactants, which enable the cleaner to rinse off easily with water. Surfactants can cause many problems in streams and rivers. Some fish and fish eggs can be killed by even low concentrations.

What You Can Do:

If possible, wash your vehicle at a commercial carwash facility, where the wash water is treated before getting into our local waterways. Commercial businesses that wash vehicles, including portable vehicle-detailing operations, are prohibited from discharging wash water to the environment. The businesses are required to direct all wash water to the sanitary sewer which goes to the local wastewater treatment plant or capture and contain it to be hauled off-site for proper disposal.

Consider washing your vehicle on a porous surface, such as a lawn, where the wash water can soak into the soil, be treated by soil particles and microbes, and be filtered before it enters the groundwater.

Many automotive fluids—motor oil, antifreeze, transmission fluid, degreasers, solvents, and the like—are hazardous wastes. They're toxic to us, animals, and to the environment.

Pouring  used auto fluids like antifreeze and brake fluid into a storm drain or driving a car on top of a drain and letting fluids flow into the drain not only pollutes waterways—it's illegal. Violators will be prosecuted and fined up to $500 per incident.

What You Can Do:

You can help reduce pollution from vehicle fluids by following a few common-sense guidelines:

• When you're making repairs or performing minor maintenance, make sure you've protected the sidewalk, curb, street, and gutter from automotive fluids before you start working.
• Place  a pan or container under the oil pan, brake line, or other auto part on which you're performing maintenance or which is heavily leaking.
• Place pads, cardboard, newspaper, or kitty litter around the pan to catch spills and leaks.
• Recycle used oil and antifreeze at the County Transfer Station or a service station.
• Place lightly soiled (only) absorbent materials in the trash.
• Collect used automotive fluids in sealable containers marked with their contents. Never mix different fluids in one container. Store the containers in a secure location where they can't spill, tip over, or wash off into a storm drain.
• Take used transmission, brake, or other automotive fluids and heavily soaked absorbent materials to  the Transfer Station's Household Hazardous Waste Collection Area.