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Did you read the article? The article was primarily about noise pollution.
A group of activists got leaf blowers banned in the nation’s capital (2019)
31–40 of 176 posts
Re: A group of activists got leaf blowers banned in the nation’s capital (2019)
#32I live in DC, a few bits of info about why it makes sense here, and may not make sense in your home:
1. They didn't ban leaf blowers, the banned _gas_ leaf blowers. Electric ones are quieter, inexpensive, and work just as well nowadays. My building has an electric Milwaukee that was 200 bucks and lasts all afternoon on a battery or two.
2. This isn't about people wanting to manicure their lawns out in the burbs at 7am on Saturdays and using a gallon of gas per decade. DC is relatively dense with mid-rises and office buildings, it's the grounds crews and landscapers running them 9-5.
3. Coincidentally now with the age of work from home it's an extra boon not to have your neighboring building's super blasting a leaf blower below your window at 11am during your zoom meeting.
With any policy you have to look at the downsides -- people and companies have to buy new leaf blowers and batteries, what's the cost in money and environment? But I think they're fairly minor compared to the upsides in pollution and peace and quiet.
The main people who get hurt by this policy are small business landscapers, who are eligible for a subsidy to help replace equipment, which I think is a nice compromise.
Re: A group of activists got leaf blowers banned in the nation’s capital (2019)
#33That's interesting about the 2 stroke engine being the issue for pollution. "In 2014 a study published in Nature Communications found that VOC emissions (a variety of carbon gases that can produce smog and harm human beings) were on average 124 times higher from an idling two-stroke scooter than from a truck or a car" Though this quote does make me wonder, what about when each vehicle are in transit?
2-stroke engines are designed to have the oil mixed with the fuel - they burn it as part of operation. It makes them pretty terrible from an emissions standpoint. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two-stroke_engine#Lubrication
Re: A group of activists got leaf blowers banned in the nation’s capital (2019)
#34Earlier quoted context omitted.
Part of it is because of lawns, if you have a lot of trees the leaves can simply smother your lawn. But even in cities there’s reasons to clean them up. They clog drains, they lump together in the gutter creating blockages that cause large puddles when it rains, they stain the pavement, they decompose on the sidewalk and people track it everywhere in buildings, and more. Maybe you don’t see these as problems that nee…
Everywhere in America that I have lived, their primary use case is landscapers blowing leaves and trash from private property into the street, thereby clogging drains.
Just because they do that doesn’t mean they’re supposed to.
Re: A group of activists got leaf blowers banned in the nation’s capital (2019)
#35That's interesting about the 2 stroke engine being the issue for pollution. "In 2014 a study published in Nature Communications found that VOC emissions (a variety of carbon gases that can produce smog and harm human beings) were on average 124 times higher from an idling two-stroke scooter than from a truck or a car" Though this quote does make me wonder, what about when each vehicle are in transit?
There is now fuel injected 2-stroke engines which will pass the current Euro4 emissions rules for dirt bikes and motorcycles. There's no reason that a small 2-stroke can't have lower emissions today. It's clearly more expensive to make a fuel and oil injected 2-stroke engine than a simple pre-mix 2-stroke, but it's possible and then you get all the benefits (and even more!) of a traditional 2-stroke in terms of power…
One of the major benefits of a two stroke engine is the simplicity of the design, which lowers cost, reduces size, and increases reliability. Your proposal is a net loss on all these factors.
A far better solution is to replace these sorts of things with battery powered electric solutions.
Re: A group of activists got leaf blowers banned in the nation’s capital (2019)
#36Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Part of it is because of lawns, if you have a lot of trees the leaves can simply smother your lawn. Do you think we don't have trees and lawns in Europe?
Do you think they think you don't have trees and lawns in Europe? Why are you acting like this is hard to understand?
No post body was provided.
Re: A group of activists got leaf blowers banned in the nation’s capital (2019)
#37Earlier quoted context omitted.
Part of it is because of lawns, if you have a lot of trees the leaves can simply smother your lawn. But even in cities there’s reasons to clean them up. They clog drains, they lump together in the gutter creating blockages that cause large puddles when it rains, they stain the pavement, they decompose on the sidewalk and people track it everywhere in buildings, and more. Maybe you don’t see these as problems that nee…
> Part of it is because of lawns, if you have a lot of trees the leaves can simply smother your lawn. Do you think we don't have trees and lawns in Europe?
Of course I don’t think that. What made you think I did? Because I stated something that can happen?
Re: A group of activists got leaf blowers banned in the nation’s capital (2019)
#38Re: A group of activists got leaf blowers banned in the nation’s capital (2019)
#39Earlier quoted context omitted.
Part of it is because of lawns, if you have a lot of trees the leaves can simply smother your lawn. But even in cities there’s reasons to clean them up. They clog drains, they lump together in the gutter creating blockages that cause large puddles when it rains, they stain the pavement, they decompose on the sidewalk and people track it everywhere in buildings, and more. Maybe you don’t see these as problems that nee…
Everywhere in America that I have lived, their primary use case is landscapers blowing leaves and trash from private property into the street, thereby clogging drains.
uhh, usually they bag them up where I've lived.
Re: A group of activists got leaf blowers banned in the nation’s capital (2019)
#40That's interesting about the 2 stroke engine being the issue for pollution. "In 2014 a study published in Nature Communications found that VOC emissions (a variety of carbon gases that can produce smog and harm human beings) were on average 124 times higher from an idling two-stroke scooter than from a truck or a car" Though this quote does make me wonder, what about when each vehicle are in transit?
There is now fuel injected 2-stroke engines which will pass the current Euro4 emissions rules for dirt bikes and motorcycles. There's no reason that a small 2-stroke can't have lower emissions today. It's clearly more expensive to make a fuel and oil injected 2-stroke engine than a simple pre-mix 2-stroke, but it's possible and then you get all the benefits (and even more!) of a traditional 2-stroke in terms of power…
Interesting - At least in my area most of the gas weed eaters available for sale are now 4-stroke. Wonder which will end up being more prevalent.