To the editor:

This letter is in support of the recent action taken by Chad Voigt, our stormwater engineer, regarding shutting down the car wash fundraiser sponsored by the Lawrence Community Shelter.

Often we citizens are unaware of ordinances that prohibit some kind of action, and it appears that this was the case in this situation.

Lawrence is lucky to have Voigt as our stormwater engineer. He has been in charge of bringing Lawrence into compliance with the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System regulations over the past few years and enforcing this ordinance is one of his jobs.

We are equally lucky to have Loring Henderson as director of the Lawrence Community Shelter and applaud the creativity demonstrated to support the shelter and its clients. The offer from Rick Nunez, general manager at Auto Exchange, to let the shelter use his facilities on one or more Saturdays is also appreciated.

Our rivers would be healthier if we all used commercial car washes so that the discharge would be treated by our sanitary sewer system. Currently, the EPA still allows individuals to wash their cars at home because the pollutant runoff is significantly less than the runoff would be from a car wash continuing over several hours on concrete. We have enough problems with river pollution as it is. Let’s try to be mindful of what we all can do to try to make it healthier.

Melinda Henderson,

Lawrence