Dept. of Ecology doesn’t know how to tell you how to wash your car


In the most passive/aggressive news release ever to reach my inbox, the Washington Department of Ecology said it would like you to know that while municipal stormwater permits don’t allow soap in storm drains, there is no law preventing you from washing your car at home.

It would just be really, really awesome if you didn’t. Or just, like, did it carefully. To protect the environment. And be good to the Earth. You know?

From the department’s 13-paragraph news release:

In a letter to cities and counties covered by the state’s municipal stormwater permit, Ecology Director Jay Manning said it has recently become apparent that there is significant confusion regarding how the stormwater permits apply to residential car washing. …

“Washing our car or truck is as American as baseball and apple pie,” he said. “Until we have the facts, it’s hard to imagine that there is a connection between keeping your car clean and keeping our rivers, lakes and marine waters clean and healthy. It’s harder still to believe that one person washing their car can really cause any harm. However, thousands of people washing their cars create a cumulative pollution effect for our waters that reside below our storm drains.”

To be fair, the department did link to some resources on runoff problems (8-page PDF) and tips on how people can wash their cars more responsibly (link coming soon).

It just wasn’t very direct.

Anyone out there have a guilt complex about washing cars at home?

Monica Guzman