It’s no secret that as average temperatures climb and the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere increases, more and more businesses are trying to improve their relationship with the environment. No matter their motives — whether they’re financial or out of genuine care for the Earth — the environmental benefits of going green remain the same and incredibly valuable.
However, some might be surprised to learn that auto repair shops are also beginning to make the transition to more environmentally friendly business practices. This industry that traditionally hasn’t been thought of as not exercising the most environmental stewardship is beginning to shape up its behavior toward Mother Earth. There are myriad things that shop owners can do to reduce their environmental impact — from disposing of their different types of waste in a better fashion to substituting some of the products given to their customers.
Keep the Car Running
Of course, the most glaring way to increase the eco-friendliness of a vehicle is jut to keep it running. This is easy enough to understand: The longer a someone can keep their vehicle in working condition and on the road, the longer it will stay out of a junkyard. Plus, if a car doesn’t break down, then its owner isn’t forced into buying a new one that would increase the demand of resource-intensive automobiles.
Auto repair shops have always kept cars in working condition for longer, but now shops are also encouraged to do all this in a way that’s more environmentally friendly, too. For instance, some shops are starting to offer tune-ups that also improve gas mileage and work toward a longer car life. Also, more environmentally friendly auto shops are focusing more on fixing broken parts, rather than replacing them. These mechanics only order new parts if the parts are beyond repair, ultimately eliminating unnecessary waste.
Where To Start?
If you’re trying to make your auto shop more environmentally friendly, a good place to start is simply by using nontoxic degreasers and encouraging customers to choose environmentally friendly products when working on their own cars.
When servicing vehicles, auto shops that want to reduce their environmental impact should also take careful steps to ensure that no toxic materials or oil runoff is escaping into the street or storm drains. Also, shops can even make the move to recycle used motor oil and if they really want to go all out, shops can even purchase wind or solar-powered electricity generators to power their business. No matter what, even if shop owners don’t think they have the means to make big moves toward going green, doing something simple like using recycled paper and soy ink to print business flyers and brochures is a big step in the right direction.
As society moves continues to strive for a more sustainable approach to living, having an environmentally friendly auto repair shop is a keen business investment. Even by just taking small steps here and there, your shop can reduce its environmental impact over time by a more-than-significant margin. If that’s not reason enough to start going green, then I don’t know what is!
Written by the staff of Custom Complete Automotive. Custom Complete is your go to solution for car repair, car inspections and an oil change Columbia MO has to offer.