Car washing ileegal!! What do you think?

Car washing is the next target of environmental regulation. One county has banned rinsing car-wash detergent down storm drains; another city plans to restrict Boy-Scout car-wash fund-raisers; another has proposed to ban washing your car at home. Potential penalties include tickets or jail. Reasons: detergent pollution and water waste. Alternatives: commercial car-washes or "waterless" soaps that require no rinsing. Complaints: 1) The car-wash nannies will come for you next. 2) Car-wash detergent is nothing compared to all the other crap that gets washed into storm drains by nature. 3) Car-washing teaches kids teamwork and effort. 4) What if a dog poops on my sidewalk? 5) What about homeless people who wash themselves in public waterways?

yeah and you can't dump oil down the drain either! Damn the fishes, I want to be able to get rid of my trash without moving it more then 10 feet from my driveway.

Oh the humanity!

Did you know that many places restrict places like traveling sandwich trucks because they compete unfairly with the real businesses that pay money for restaurants, advertising, licenses, etc.?

Maybe that is the same reason why car wash fund raisers are targeted in your area.

Other reasons might be the environmental one, the lack of accountability as to where the funds go, the safety issues of kids running in street trying to attract customers, or being around moving cars in the driveway itself, child labor issues, insurance issues, damage to the sewer system or pumping system, and so on.

If you don't like the laws that are passed in your area, then contact your local representatives and let them know, and elect new ones if the current ones won't repeal the laws.

Good luck with that though, because democracy is for compromises, not for squeaky wheels who want grease (no pun intended), and the laws you described seem like more then a reasonable compromise for everyone in your area.

I thought the earth was warming so fast we were going to be under water. I wish to hell they would make up their minds.

That's incredible! I can't believe that the county would expect people to not wash their cars.

I actually like that law. The storm drains drain directly into lakes, so the ecosystem would be affected as some animals will die of the detergent. That is just a small sacrifice that has to be made for protecting the environment.

Makes sense to me. I'll respond point by point.

1. Don't quite get you here...

2. But car washing is much more frequently done than dumping a half cup of oil in your yard. Thus it happens on a larger scale... and more of it can accumulate.

3. So do half a thousand other things. car washing isn't very hard anyway... half an hour and you're through. Most kids won't get anything out of that.

4. What if anything poops in the environment? It isn't a problem. Poop is PART of the environment.

5. Same as 4 pretty much, unless your washing off toxic waste or pesticides I don't think Its a huge deal...