Sun, Rain and Car Wash

If it's spring time it's time for those free car washes that pop up in shopping plazas all around Northern Virginia. Today, I passed three different ones between Arlington and Sterling. The kids working the car washes are earnest enough in their attempts to raise money for everything from travel soccer to the high school band. But I just motor on by in my dirty Honda Civic. 

I rarely wash my car. At first  I didn't because I just didn't care whether it was clean on the outside or not, but I choose not to wash my care now because I think fresh, clean water is too precious even here in temperate Virginia.

In the last couple of years, Northern Virginia has been under a drought watch. Rainfall was well below average, and so was snowfall. As a result, counties across the state have been asking homeowners to water their lawns less and to skip washing the car just because someone can write their name in accumulated road dust. But this year seems to be better for our water supply, especially the last week or so.

It's been raining off and on for the past eleven days, so there's a good chance that my neck of the woods is out from under any kind of drought watch. And with the sun come thoughts of getting out there and washing our cars.

Nevertheless, those of us who care about a healthy environment, not just for ourselves, but for the animals around us, may want to take a few important steps when washing a car -- steps that the high school road-side car washes don't.

First, remember the wisdom of Scar, the fish that helped Nemo get back to his father: "All drains lead to the ocean," Scar said.

All drains do lead to the ocean, and a look at most of the street-side sewers reveals a little green and blue emblem. The emblem reminds everyone that what you put down the drain sooner or later winds up in the Chesapeake and other major bodies of water.

That includes the soap that we all use when washing our cars. Most soap that's used when washing a car contain phosphates, a chemical that contributes to oxygen depletion in the bay and elsewhere. 

And those fundraisers that I drove past earlier today? They didn't seem to be following the accepted guidelines for keeping the run-off from the car washes from getting into our creeks, rivers and bays. Go here for some tips, or visit the Stormh2o, the journal for the Surface Water Quality Professional association.

Some states have even tried to ban driveway car washing. The legislature met resistance, and I don't think that something like that would even make it out of committee here in the Old Dominion. 

But one thing is clear, using a commercial car wash is better on the environment than soaping it up in the driveway. Commercial car washes are required to reclaim the bulk of the water used in their businesses, and then treat the water. Many of them reuse the water after it's filtered.

So if we're going to ride in around in cars so shiny that we can see ourselves in them, take it to the car wash to get cleaned. The school fund raisers? They're usually touted as free, so just give them a couple of bucks and drive on. Our waterways will appreciate it, and so will the kids.