Date:         Tue, 24 Jan 1995 16:07:01 -0600
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         dbax@mindspring.com (Donald Baxter)
Subject:      Re: Coolant disposal RANT!

>all right here it goes....
>
>why oh why would anybody pour coolant down the drain (even if you "dilute"
it?)?
>
> A very basic tenet of ecology or environmentalism (please read this
>message before writing me off as a holier than thou' granola head!) is that
>everything is interconnected. Ultimately, the coolant you dump into the
>sewer will end up in some form in your drinking water, or something else.
>Coolant doesn't magically disappear into the abyss once you put in into the
>sewer!!!! BTW, certain forms of wildlife (mamals and birds) are very fond
>of drinking spilt coolant (due to its' "sweet" taste), this leads to
>imminent death!!

While I will agree with you that coolant does not magically diappear, it
appears to be a legally disposable waste as far as this city's water
treatment capabilities are concerned.  It certainly doesn't magically
disappear, however, according to the water/sewer officials in my city, it IS
a treatable waste.  And as far as the immenent death thing, each year in the
United States an estimated 50,000 dogs and cats die of ethylene-based
coolant poisoning every year; this CAN be avoided by dilution.

>I would say clean up all spilt used coolant w/ rags. The large amounts
>collect in a container, and when you've got the bottle full enough to
>warrant a trip, take your coolant and other chemical nasties to the local
>"toxic waste disposal", usually run by a municipality. They spend a lot of
>time trying to convince people not to dispose of chemical wastes down the
>toilet! I'm sure they'd like to hear from you. You wouldn't pour used motor
>oil down the sewer (I hope!) why on earth would you pour coolant?

And motor oil is not considered a "treatable" waste here or anywhere else,
consequently I recycle it.  The fact of the matter is is that different
chemicals fall into different categories.  I have been told that Propylene
or Ethylene Glycol-based coolants are about as treatable as any household
cleaner that most of us would wash down the drain without thinking much about.

>The solution to pollution is not "dilution". The dilution mentality is best
>exemplified by your local industries "super tall" somestack. If they build
>the stack tall enough the "flyash" or whatever other particulates they are
>producing disperse over a large enough area so that the company will be in
>compliance w/ gov't reg's. It is not that they are polluting less, they are
>just dispersing it over a larger area!

Again, we are dealing with degrees.  It is a sad commentary about humans
that we produce waste. I know what my used oil is becoming, hopefully.  Just
what are they doing with your relatively harmless used coolant.

And now that I am off my soapbox, I do consider myself an environmentalist,
and a liberal, even.  But not reactionary.