Green News & Links

Green News:

Keep your Clothes Safe: Toxins are Everywhere

Read this fantastic news article reporting on the harmful actions of PERC, the chemical that Dollar Wise is the only dry cleaner in Winnipeg to not use. Read this snippet here:

Since 1992, the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Design for the Environment Garment and Textile Care Partnership has been working in partnership with the dry-cleaning industry. Their goal? To reduce exposures to perchloroethylene, or perc, the solvent that approximately 85 percent of the more than 35,000 dry cleaners use on garments and textile products. This nonflammable, synthetic solvent can potentially cause harm to the workers who are exposed to it, as well as to you and the environment. Some studies have shown that workers exposed to perc have higher risks of skin, liver, and kidney damage, and possibly some types of cancer. Perc can also get into our air, water, and soil during several phases of the dry-cleaning process, and it can enter your body through drinking-water contamination, skin exposure, or most frequently, inhalation.

Read the entire article here.

Dollar Wise as Green as can be on Shaw

Dollar Wise promotes Green Dry Cleaning at Moose Game!

Dollar Wise runs Service Vehicle on Veggie Oil

"Veggie Oil powers Cleaners' Van"
September 15, 2008

Alternative Fuel Service Vehicle

Dollar Wise Quality Cleaners is proud to announce the arrival of their new alternative fuel service vehicle. The new van, which hit the streets of Winnipeg on September 10th, 2008, runs on recycled vegetable oil.

Recycled vegetable oil, not to be confused with “bio-diesel”, which is a manufactured fuel, is collected from local restaurants in the Winnipeg area. The oil is used in a converted diesel engine and cannot be used in a gasoline engine. Recycled vegetable oil will provide 95 – 97% of the performance output as diesel fuel, at about half the cost.

Shane Johnston, General Manager, states, “Our previous service vehicle ran on gasoline. The estimated cost savings with recycled vegetable oil is over 60%, which, for us, equates to about $10,000.00 annually.”

This diesel van was purchased in Germany and was shipped to Winnipeg where it was taken to Frank Motors at 575 Notre Dame Ave. Within three days they had the van converted and safetied. The van will run all year round. In the winter, the engine will start up on diesel and switch automatically to vegetable oil as soon as the engine is warm enough.

Most important, canola plants, which provide the vegetable oil originally, require carbon dioxide to grow. So the small amount of carbon released as the van is driven actually contributes to the health of this renewable resource.

100% Environmentally Friendly Dry Cleaning Solvent

On Earth Day, April 22, 2008, Dollar Wise went 100% GREEN! Our dry cleaning solvent was converted to an organic brominated solvent called DRYSOLV, a non-hazardous, non-chlorinated, non-flammable, non-pollutant solvent.

The Mayor, Sam Katz, cutting the ribbon on our Grand Green Re-opening: