BMW of Riverside Receives Environmental Excellence Award

RIVERSIDE, Calif., July 6 -- California automobile dealership BMW of Riverside has achieved an auto industry milestone by being recognized as one of the most environmentally conscious businesses in the area. The City of Riverside honored the dealership for its commitment to clean water practices that include reduced water usage and innovative use of technology to reduce pollutants.

General Manager, Tom Naso, credited the award to BMW of Riverside's aggressive and well-documented water handling processes. Not only do these efforts reduce costs for the dealership, they help to create a greener, more sustainable environment for the Riverside community.

"We're pleased to win any award, but being recognized for contributing to our environment is especially rewarding," Naso said. "Riverside is a very progressive city with regard to environmental issues and as a local business, we feel a strong responsibility to be good stewards and create a cleaner, greener community for our customers as well as ourselves."

BMW of Riverside retains an environmental consultant who makes quarterly visits to evaluate the dealership's processes and make recommendations for improvement. The dealership also works closely with city inspectors to implement their recommendations for clean wastewater practices and ensure full regulatory compliance.

Among its innovative practices is a reverse osmosis process using two 1,000-gallon storage tanks for the dealership's car wash facility. The system forces water through a membrane that filters out minerals and other fine particles, using pure water for the final rinse and putting less unfiltered water back into the system.

The dealership also has a very strict training program to ensure that all employees know how to handle spills, and it adheres to the best practices for solid waste containment and disposal of rags, batteries, and electronics.

Riverside's Environmental Excellence Award is given annually by the city's Public Works Department.

  For more information, contact:

  Melissa Marini
  (951) 785-4444 ext. 114
  Mmarini@bmwriverside.com