Zoom Car Wash

Water runoff from home car washing is an activity causing serious environmental damage to Moreton Bay's water quality and consequently its wildlife is being severely affected with experts predicting much of the bay will be severely damaged and potentially ruined by 2026.

It is shocking figures such as these that have driven local environmentally friendly carwash chain, Zoom Carwash to launch its ‘Wash Smart' campaign which aims to help educate the community about the dangers home car washing poses to local marine life.

However they are also urging the government and local authorities to follow suit and take stronger action against the damage and pollution caused from activities such as home car washing which experts say, at the current rate, is expected to push the local endangered dugong population closer towards extinction.

Lance Woodrow, Director of Zoom Carwash is passionately concerned about the toxic run off entering the Bay and believes the Queensland government and local authorities are not doing enough to get the message out to the public.

"Home car washing contributes approximately 400 Olympic sized swimming pools of sludge into Moreton Bay every year," said Mr Woodrow. "When you consider that there are over 975,000 cars on Brisbane's roads alone, with more coming every day into South East Queensland, the amount of pollutants entering our waterways is alarming.

"The government is not doing enough about informing the community of the environmental hazards of home washing and it needs to take Moreton Bay's environmental future seriously, right now, before it's too late!"

President of Wildlife Queensland, Simon Baltais, agrees that many Brisbane residents are unaware of the damage people can cause every time they wash their car at home and supports programs like the Wash Smart campaign.

"Contaminated waste from stormwater is a massive threat to marine environments and at the current rate the local dugong population could be severely compromised or potentially locally extinct by 2026," he said. "If we don't take action now, by 2026 Moreton Bay will be an environmental disaster zone."

Toxic waste from oil, tar, brake dust and other contaminants contain harmful chemicals that are washed directly into stormwater drains and end up in Moreton Bay during home washing. Serious pollutants include petroleum hydrocarbons, motor oil, solid sediments, nitrogen and phosphorous, heavy metals including copper, lead and zinc and Mr Baltais says the volume entering the Bay is increasing at an alarming rate.

"These chemicals dramatically disrupt fish growth, cause deformities, impact food chains and cause water degradation reducing egg hatching success," he said. "The massive population boom over the last decade has seen more cars on the road in South East Queensland and as a result, an alarming increase in pollutants entering the Bay."

"I can't stress enough that if we don't change people's behaviour with regards to activities such as home washing now we will have an environmental disaster on our hands."

Moreton Bay has significantly declined to a D ranking in water quality by the Ecosystem Health Monitoring Program and is set to decline further if action isn't taken as South East Queensland's population grows from 2.92 million (ABS) to an expected 4 million by 2026 .

Zoom Carwash, Brisbane's only five star green carwash, ensures all contaminants from vehicles are collected on site and professionally processed, minimising the impact on the environment.

By law commercial carwashes must ensure they adhere to the strictest of environmental guidelines in water conservation and runoff collection, but this law currently does not apply to members of the public. Anyone can choose to wash their cars in a way that allows polluted water to flow into stormwater drains and ultimately into our waterways, which Mr Woodrow believes, "is a tragedy, when you can wash your car for as little as $2 in a controlled environment."

"If the government is really serious about protecting our Bay then it should do more to discourage home washing that pollutes," he said.

"Many people wash their vehicles in the street, the driveway and in the front yard because no one has explained the damage they cause when they do."

"If home washing was more strongly discouraged and people utilised controlled commercial car washing facilities instead then the amount of pollutants entering Moreton Bay would dramatically decrease. The government and local authorities of South East Queensland need to take a stand on this issue, but in the meantime since they are not doing enough we at Zoom Carwash will."

Mr Woodrow says he is determined to help save Moreton Bay through the Wash Smart campaign which will run throughout 2010 and will continue to raise awareness about the damage home washing causes to the environment.

More information can be found on the Zoom Carwash website, www.zoomcarwash.com.au.

Zoom Carwash is a ‘Green Choice' carwash and has facilities in Holland Park, Albany Creek and Chermside and is preparing to open their fourth facility at Alderley.