FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 23, 2015
Contact: Elly Snow
Puget Sound Car Wash Association
206-622-8425
www.pscarwash.org ⋅ www.charitycarwash.org ⋅ carwashassoc@qwestoffice.net
Help protect the Sound – May is Car Wash Awareness Month
If your car’s dirty, well it’s not just dirt- it’s grime that contains heavy metals, oil, and toxic chemicals. May is Car Wash Awareness Month, and for the Puget Sound Car Wash Association and our partners this is an opportunity to raise awareness of how citizens in our region can help protect the Puget Sound.
When it comes to water quality, keeping your car clean is better than letting the rain rinse heavy metals, oil, and toxic chemicals off your car and, ultimately, into the Puget Sound. This toxic mix of chemicals has a deadly effect on aquatic life. How you choose to wash your car is also important. When you wash your car in your driveway, the soap and chemicals can go into the storm drain, polluting our streams, rivers, and the Puget Sound.
Citizens of the region can help decrease water pollution caused by run off from cars by taking their car to a professional car wash or by washing their car over gravel or lawn.
The Car Wash Awareness Month campaign is presented by the Puget Sound Car Wash Association in partnership with the Department of Ecology, King, Pierce, Thurston, and Snohomish Counties, cities around the Puget Sound, the Puget Sound Partnership, the Washington Environmental Council, and the Puget Soundkeeper Alliance.
With over 3 million cars in King, Pierce, Thurston, and Snohomish Counties, it’s widely recognized that cars contribute significant pollution to the Puget Sound. Three million cars contribute an estimated 9,194 gallons of gasoline, diesel, and motor oil, 19,355 pounds of phosphorous and nitrogen, 2,903 pounds of ammonia, and 1,451,613 pounds of solid waste into our waterways annually.
Professional car washes use oil/water separators that remove pollutants, which are ultimately pumped out and properly disposed of, and their wastewater is discharged into the sanitary sewer. In addition, professional washes use minimal water, compared to home car washing; though washing your car at home over gravel or the lawn allows polluted water to absorb into the ground and keeps it from running into the storm drain.
The Puget Sound Car Wash Association is a leader in the effort to protect streams, lakes, and the Puget Sound from pollution caused by washing cars and trucks. We offer nonprofit organizations a car wash ticket program as an alternative to parking lot car washes. We have been awarded King County’s Earth Hero Award as an industry leader for innovative and effective environmental programs, and have received the Community Service Leadership Award from the International Car Wash Association.
For more information, contact the Puget Sound Car Wash Association, 6351 Seaview Ave. NW, Seattle, WA 98107-2664, phone 206.622.8425 or by email at carwashassoc@qwestoffice.net.
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