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Car Care Options for the Ecology Minded Owners
Printed in the Mechanicsville Local, (Mechanicsville, VA)
Car Care Section Dated 10/28/98
Government regulations and rising consumer awareness continue to drive the push for environmental improvements in the auto industry.
Motorists do not need to wait for government intervention, however, to begin making earth friendly car care decisions.
Two of the biggest polluting byproducts of the automobile today are used motor oil and conventional anti-freeze.
Fortunately, ecology minded car owners who think about the impact of their actions are discovering alternatives to their traditional car care regimen.
Problem of used motor oil
If one quart of motor oil can produce a two acre slick and one gallon fouls a million gallons of drinking water, the damage being done by the current "change it as often as the seasons" habit is considerable.
In the United States alone, more than one billion gallons of motor oil are consumed annually. According to some estimates, as much as 40 percent of this amount is discarded improperly, dumped in the ground or thrown out with the trash to end up in landfills, seeping into groundwater.
One way to significantly reduce the amount of used motor oil in America would be to make a motor oil that lasts longer and doesn't breakdown after 3,000 miles of severe service.
In point of fact, such oils already exist. Instead of conventional petroleum based products, the new synthesized motor oils last longer, perform better and offer a host of additional benefits as well.
In 1972, AMSOIL Inc. of Superior, Wis., developed the first American Petroleum Institute rated synthetic motor oil for passenger car applications.
On its first can, AMSOIL proclaimed a 25,000 miles or one year oil drain interval. By adopting an extended oil change interval of one year instead of every three months, motorists would produce 75 percent less motor oil waste.
In addition to reducing the amount of waste oil, converting America's cars and trucks to synthetic motor oil would also significantly reduce the hundreds of millions of pounds of high density polyethylene (HDPE) bottles that are used annually to package motor oil.
Although this concept of extending drain intervals and its environmental benefits was introduced by AMSOIL in 1972, the environmental significance only recently has been recognized by the mainstream.
Potential health hazards of antifreeze
The primary chemical in traditional antifreeze is ethylene glycol. Highly toxic, less than one half cup is a lethal dose for the average size human. Lesser amounts can cause serious kidney damage and central nervous system depression.
What's worse, when spilled on driveways and roadsides, its sweet smell and taste attract wildlife and make it more likely to be consumed.
For this reason, several companies in recent years have introduced propylene glycol based antifreeze products as a safer alternative. (Including AMSOIL)
Propylene glycol antifreeze provides the same all climate protection along with low toxicity and biodegradability. In preparing your car for winter, pay attention to the type of antifreeze you are. putting in it. Is it safe?
Practicing good stewardship
Whether you use conventional petroleum products or synthetic lubricants, be sure to properly dispose of used motor oil.
Nearly every community provides recycling centers or facilities for disposing of hazardous chemicals, including used motor oil.
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