Leaves v Blowers: Fall Smackdown!
by Karin
Every fall, as we tuck into our pumpkin spice lattes and enjoy the crisp air and brilliant foliage, the showdown brews: Those who shout “leave the leaves” vs. those who want to blow every leaf shard off their lawn with the sonic, piercing drone of their gas-powered leaf blower echoing far and wide. Can this divide ever be bridged? Let’s learn a little more about the issues at hand and look at practical solutions to help us live together in peaceful Autumn harmony.
In this corner, the Leaf.
Living in Northern Illinois, our deciduous trees put on their annual show with vibrant oranges, golds and reds. This, we all can agree on – it is gorgeous time of year, and something people mention missing when they move south.(A GGGE’er lived for a few years in Florida and when September rolled around, stores would put up banners with fake autumn leaves announcing “It’s Fall!” so local residents could recall what season it was!) It’s good to be reminded as the season is fleeting, and a few windy days and a cold snap has those beautiful leaves on the ground in no time flat. This is where we point out that the ground is right where nature intended the leaves to be – to create a natural compost for the trees and plants, feed microorganisms that improve soil, and provide a habitat to protect pollinators and other animals through a cold Midwestern winter. That’s a lot of heavy lifting for these leaves!
And in this corner, the Leaf Blower.
It’s really not its fault, the leaf blower is a symptom of the American suburban lawn fetish. In the 1950’s, Americans decided that a wide, uber green expanse of lawn made from turfgrass was the best choice for their suburban dream house. But what they did not realize is that everything that supports a green lawn comes with an environmental price. (Think toxic weed killer, polluting two-stroke engine lawn mowers, fertilizer, fewer native pollinators, extra water usage, and yes, leaf blowers…) A little more on the latter:
You may have heard, leaf blowers are noisy – pumping out 100+ decibels, similar to a plane taking off. For users, prolonged use can cause hearing issues, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The gas powered, two-stroke engine leaf blowers are polluting – with up to a 40% of the gas/oil they use released into the air as aerosol, contributing to greenhouse gas and breathing issues. The California Air Resources board says running a leaf blower for an hour creates “roughly the same amount of smog-forming emissions as driving a 2017 Toyota Camry 1,100 miles.” They also produce benzene, which is noxious and has been linked to cancer in an EPA study.
The impact on health is greatest on heavy users, which are most often landscape workers and is cited as an environmental justice issue given the workers long term exposure to the noise and emissions.
While there are some who still defend the gas powered leaf blower, it may be that their time is up. Can we find a way to bridge the divide?
What is the solution to this Leaf vs. Leaf Blower conundrum? Part of the answer lies in changing our mindset about lawns and leaves – that leaves are not something to be eliminated, but embraced. And the perfect lawn may carry too high of an environmental price. Too many leaves will kill the lawn, we get it. So let’s talk about what can be done to champion the leaf while reducing the impact of the leaf blower, so everyone wins! Here is an initial list. Let us know if you can think of others:
Deploy rakes! Rakes are not a new invention, the first one was likely invented in 1000 B.C. in China and the design has remained pretty much the same since then! Raking the leaves from your lawn (and composting them or putting them in your garden beds) also is a great autumn workout, not to mention the fun of jumping in a pile of leaves!
Mulching mowers. These are mowers (electric mowers are best as regular mowers have that two-stroke engine we mentioned above) that mulch the leaves into smaller pieces which can be left on the lawn without smothering it.
Composting the leaves. You rake them up and bag them up in paper bags with Village stickers, and the Village will take them to be composted. You can also put them in your Village of GE curbside compost bin, or your own backyard compost area.
Raking the lawn leaves into your garden bed. Your garden beds will appreciate the leaf blanket, as will pollinators and animals!
Switch to electric leaf blowers (and lawn mowers!) Electric leaf blowers are lighter, less polluting, and can be cheaper than their gas powered brethren. They are still loud, but operate at lower decibels with shorter sound frequencies. Some municipalities are taking the first step and having park service or public works departments ditch their gas mowers and leaf blowers and move to all electric. This economic feasibility study from Santa Cruz, CA, found that switching was cost-neutral in one year, and saved money starting year two.
Municipal gas blowers “buy back” programs. Some municipalities are putting up money to buy back gas powered leaf blowers and lawn mowers in order to meet their local climate goals. They are often connected to the next item on our list…
Municipal gas-powered blower bans. More than 100 communities have banned or restricted the use of leaf blowers, including two in the Chicagoland area – Evanston and Oak Park. Often citizen-driven, more and more full and partial bans are starting to take effect everywhere where neighborhoods want a more peaceful and healthy environment. Restrictions include for example, limiting leaf blower use to just a few weeks a season (fall cleanup time) as opposed to permitting these to be run all summer to blow grass clippings, dirt, and other objects.
There is a lot that has been written on this subject. If you care to read further and dig deeper, here are a few resources to get you started.
Think Globally on Climate, Act Locally on Leaf Blowers Kleinman Center for Energy Policy Feb, 2023
Leaf Blowers: Addressing the Impacts of Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers in Seattle, WA City of Seattle, June 2022
All California small engines are to be zero emissions by 2024 California Air Resource Board, Dec 2021
Why Cities are Taking Action …: Audubon, Spring 2021
The First Thing We Do, Let’s Kill All the Leaf Blowers Opinion: NY Times October, 2022
Glen Ellyn's Environmental Commission has heard from concerned citizens about leaf blowers in our village. Should the village take action? What do you think? Let us know at info@gogreenglenellyn.org.
