Georgia Removes Carwashes from Outdoor Water Use List

By Drew Whitney

The Georgia General Assembly passed a bill March 31 that exempts professional carwash facilities from general outdoor water use restrictions. The act passed the House 161-2 and amends Georgia state code, which had lumped carwashes among a list of outdoor water users, including professional landscapers, ornamental-flower growers, sod producers and hydro-seeders, according to Bruce Arnett, president of American Equipment & Supply.

The act also removes Georgia swimming pools from the outdoor water user list.

The passage of the bill is a victory for Georgia carwash operators and vendors who last October formed the Georgia Coalition of Car Washes to educate government officials and the public about the benefits of professional carwashing and to lobby for the removal of carwashes from the outdoor water users list.

“We don’t consume water like any other businesses on the [outdoor water user] list,” said Arnett, who also is a director for the coalition. “Instead, we reclaim much of it, and we are connected to sanitary sewer systems (that also recycle used wash water).”

The act states that carwashes will not be deemed outdoor water users if they are connected to a “sanitary sewer system of a political subdivision or local government authority or recycle used wash water” and if they are certified as “meeting or exceeding applicable best management practices for carwashing facilities.”

Best practice standards will be provided by the Board of Natural Resources for implementation at carwashes no later than Oct. 1, according to the act. The checklist of items to be checked for conservation efficiency each year would include spray nozzles, hoses, faucets, backflow prevention, and tie-ins to sanitary sewers or a government-approved system.

The best practices portion of the act is likely to significantly change the operations of some carwashes. The next step from the Georgia Coalition of Car Washes is to implement a statewide certification program that aligns carwash operations with the new state code and the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD).

“The Car Wash Certification Program will be self-administered with annual inspections provided by a licensed professional (plumber or engineer),” explained Gary Dennis, president of the coalition and owner of Atlanta-based Ultra Car Wash facilities. “Carwashes will adhere to a set of guidelines for water conservation and recycling based on the type of carwash facility. The requirements are stringent and must be met annually. Once the program is underway, carwash facilities can only become certified when drought restrictions are not in place. Once restrictions are in effect, non-certified washes must begin to reduce hours of operation.”

The coalition will work in concert with the EPD to assure all systems at facilities receive a green light in order to attain certification. Those that meet and surpass the standards will be identified as such to the public, most likely with a sticker that carries a newly created logo depicting a cartoon-like car embracing a huge drop of water.

Two-thirds of Georgia’s counties have been under Stage II water restrictions, while the remaining one-third — totaling 85 counties in the state’s northern reaches — have been stuck in the more rigid Stage IV category.

The Stage IV restrictions are the strictest ever imposed in the worst drought conditions Georgia has weathered in a century. Gov. Sonny Perdue earlier declared a state of emergency for counties most affected, and then ordered utilities and water systems to reduce water consumption by 10 percent or pay the price of negligence in fines.

Tension has mounted in the state, with the prospect that a bone-dry spring and summer could launch the state into Stage V restrictions, which have never been implemented.

The work of the coalition has created positive momentum across the state and possibly beyond, educating the media, the public and governing officials to factual water consumption and reclamation at carwashes.

“We’re very pleased that we are seeing a whole change in perception with the news media,” Arnett said. “The coalition has been able to help turn the tide in this perception battle.”

The coalition currently boasts more than 100 carwash members.

For more information about the Georgia Coalition of Car Washes, visit the organization’s Web site at http://www.gasaveswater.com/.

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