Keeping your car maintenance and inspection up to date can reduce stormwater pollution. Checking for oil and fluid leaks is always a good idea not just for your car, but also to ensure that those fluids don’t end up in your driveway. If you are going to change your oil or wash your car at home, makes sure used oil and wash waste doesn’t flow to storm drains and into our local waterways.

Reduce Automobile Use
When purchasing a vehicle, choose ones with higher efficiency. Air pollution eventually settles into the ocean. Use your car less. Here is more information on how you can improve gas mileage.
Don’t forget to bike, walk, and carpool (Carpool in Massachusetts).

Automobile Maintenance
Regular maintenance of your car is important. You should check for oil, antifreeze and coolant that could leak onto roads and parking lots and then wash to storm drains. At gas stations, be careful when refueling not to spill gas and don’t “top-off’. Dispose of antifreeze properly. Valvoline Oil Change stores will dispose of spent antifreeze free of charge.

Resources
» Antifreeze
» Other Auto Fluids

Automobile Oil Changing
Go to a commercial oil change facility that will use safe changing and disposal practices. Oil spilled or leaked onto your driveway, streets or other surfaces can be washed into storm drains during heavy rain, which can contaminate rivers, beaches and bays.

Do-It-Yourself Oil Changer: Use a drop cloth with a large drain pan. Collect all used motor oil and the used oil filter. Take materials to a collection center. Undrained oil filters can contain up to 12 ounces of motor oil.

Places to Take Used Oil: Return used oil for recycling to the store where you purchased new oil. Retailers are required to accept used oil for recycling (up to 2 gallons per person per day) if you have the receipt.

Resources
» http://massachusetts.earth911.org/usa/master.asp?s=lib&a=oil/doityourself.asp
» http://www.mass.gov/dep/recycle/hazardous/motoroil.htm
» Department of Environmental Protection Used Oil Hotline: 617-556-1022 

Automobile Washing
Commercial car wash facilities use up to 10 times less water than the same job at home. Car washes are required by the Clean Water Act of 1990 to collect their dirty water runoff, ensuring that the dirty, soapy water coming off of cars does not travel to the storm drains. Car washing carries soap, nutrients, and metals and toxins that are on your car into storm drains.

Washing Your Car at Home: If you are going to wash at home, use biodegradable soap, wash on your lawn or gravel (so dirt and soap are filtered out and absorbed), and collect the soapy/dirty water in a bucket so it doesn’t go to the drain. Empty your bucket of soapy water indoors. Use the smallest amount of water as possible. Rainwater can be collected and used to wash cars, too

Car Washing Fundraisers: For car washing fundraisers insert a device that will catch waste water or wash the cars on the lawn. Use biodegradable, low phosphate soap and use water in moderation. For instructions on how to run a car wash that doesn’t pollute, see
http://www.carwashguys.com/fundraisers/ch2.html#STORM%20WATER%20DISCHARGE
or
http://ezinearticles.com/?Car-Wash-Fundraisers-and-Waste-Water-Restrictions-in-California&id=41524.

Machine Care
Keep up with maintenance of power mowers and snow blowers, especially checking for leaking fluids. Sharpen mower blades so that your mower is more efficient. Sharp mower blades can reduce fuel consumption by 22 percent over dull mower blades. In addition, dull blades tear the grass instead of cutting it cleanly. The wounds cause the grass to lose water and leave the plants more vulnerable to diseases. Mowing higher and less frequently has the same benefit, on your lawn and the environment. Another option to try is an electric mower, which pollutes less and doesn’t leak fluids.

Report Oil Dumping and Other Illegal Spills
You can call Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection emergency spill toll-free hotline at 1-888-304-1133. To report an environmental crime (intentional illegal dumping) call the state's Environmental Strike Force at 1-888-VIOLATE.