SANTA CRUZ — Henry Carter grabbed a spray nozzle and hose attached to what resembled a heavy-duty vacuum cleaner and started spraying around the wheels of a green Volkswagen Jetta.

The dirty water flowed down the wheel as it washed away dirt from the brakes of the car. But the water was contained to a self-cleaning vacuum.

That is the kind of practice that makes Water Star Motors an "Ocean Friendly Business" in Santa Cruz.

For the past five years, the city of Santa Cruz has sought to entice auto-related facilities to take steps to keep water clean under the city’s Clean Ocean Business program.

The program has a nine-page list of "Best Management Practices" for shops to follow.

There are no floor drains as with traditional garages. Spent oil and anti-freeze is stored and recycled.

Dirty car parts are scraped by hand before a machine uses heated water to clean them in a self-contained machine. The traditional way to clean parts is by using solvents, so the method is healthier for both the environment and workers, Carter noted.

Hydromops suck up oil and antifreeze and spit back nothing but water.

For garages like Carter’s, that means taking some extra time to keep dirty water contained, but he doesn’t mind.

"It is more time consuming, but I think being responsible can be time consuming at times," Carter said at his Water Street location.

The garage’s green policies and work on cars that use bio-fuels are also good for business, said his wife, Lisa Carter.

"People come here because we are an environmentally friendly shop," she said.

Under the Clean Ocean Business program, businesses that take steps to comply with sound wastewater practices are recognized by the city, and receive a decal to post at their site to entice green-minded customers.

"We kind of use it as carrot to get them to come into compliance," said Suzanne Healy, environmental projects analyst with the city.

About 60 percent of 107 such businesses in the city participate.

The idea is to keep substances like grease, detergent and other pollutants out of the city’s storm drain system and treatment plant and, therefore, out of the ocean.

"There is the incentive that we all live here," said Akin Babatola, environmental compliance manager with the city. "The broader goal is to create a sustainable environment and cleaner ocean."

But there is also the incentive of luring like-minded customers in environmentally conscious Santa Cruz. For some businesses, that means an overall ethic as well as the practical steps.

"To be successful with any environmental program, a philosophy has to be in place," said Aaron Johnston-Karas, environmental manager for Granite Rock Co.

That company participates in the program from its Coral Street facility, which houses about a dozen trucks. There the employees keep tabs on matters like oil leaks before they become problematic.

"I’m proud to be with a company that cares about the environment and is proactive," said Ken Nabal, operating engineer at the site.

The city, along with the California Water Environment Association, will honor vehicle-related facilities that have complied with the program for five years at a Thursday night awards dinner at Pasatiempo. The program is also available to restaurant and other food service businesses.

For information about the program, visit www.ci.santa-cruz.ca.us.

Contact Brian Seals at bseals@santacruzsentinel.com.