by Elsewhere 18 Replies latest jw friends
A 2000 report by the California EPA determined that the average residential leaf blower produces 145 times more hydrocarbons, 7.5 times more carbon monoxide, and 11 times more particulate matter in one hour than a 1999-2000 light duty vehicle driven at 30 mph, getting 15 miles to the gallon.
In summary:
Using a Leaf Blower for one hour produces as much pollution as driving an old truck 4,350 miles.
(145 hours @ 30 mph)
I have never seen the point of leaf blowers - whats wrong with a Broom and a Rake, followed by composting?
Mine = 0. My leaf blower is electric, (Craftsman) hence I plug it in, hence I don't create any pollution. All of the electric in my area is produced via hydroelectric dams and atomic power plants, hence no pollution from me. My leaf blower also SUCKS; literally.....you can reverse it and connect a bag to it to suck up crap.
I also use a Black & Decker Grass Hog (electric) and it has twin spools that go to town on grass....I mean serious brush you can cut with this thing....better than ANY gas-powered trimmer/edger I've ever had. It is not very hard to get used to plugging in a 100 foot extension cord; big deal!!
I have a gas mower though, a Honda - built like a tank.
I have an in-ground pool, chemical-free as I have a Carribean Clear system in it. No chlorine hardly ever (once a month you throw a gallon in) and that's it.
I have all florescent bulbs in my house. I have Velux skylights with solar-powered shades. I have all new energy saving windows and appliances.
- Wing Commander
Leaf blowing: The opposing view
Clean sidealks are safer than debris filled ones
Leafblowers require less labor, saving money
Leafblowers are made in factories supporting jobs
Leafbowers are fun to use
Leafblowers give confidence and build self esteem to workers that otherwise have very little "Hey, look! I can operate a machine!"
Leafblowers save on water and still provide that extra clean look that sweepers can't do
Leafblowers save trees since brooms destroy them
Leafblowers have been known to scare away potential burglars because of the very loud noise
Leafblowers can safely drive away unruley dogs without fear of being bitten
Leafblowers can change steretypical ideas about brooms and old ladies being witches
Leafblowers save insects lives compared to brooms which harm them with heavy sweeping. They safely fly away on a cushion of air.
Without leafblowers, life itself wouldn't be possible.
This rebuttle has been brought to you by the Leafblowers United for a Better Today
I had always raked my yard. However, one year during a very busy work period I was a little behind on raking the leaves and was planning on doing it the next day. The old snooty neighbor guy that lived right down the hill from me "told me" that I needed to rake my yard because some of "my leaves" were blowing downhill onto his yard.
I never raked leaves again as long as I lived there! Every single leaf would eventually blow downhill.
Moral of the story.....don't piss off your neighbor that lives uphill from you about leaves.
Think About It
we blow every fall...
we have a yard area akin to the size of a football field
and we have oaks and maples and birch and poplars
we dont bag then at all... we blow them into the
ravine where they eventually break down
guess we suck for blowing, eh?
I have never seen the point of leaf blowers - whats wrong with a Broom and a Rake, followed by composting?
cantleave. When you garden for someone with a driveway that is about 3/4 of a mile long a leafblower is just the job.
Do they pollute? Depends where the leaves end up :^)
What a fantastic report! Its good that they compare the polution caused by the leaf blower with a truck rather than the amount of polution caused from the generation and transmission losses of an electric blower trying to handle the same sized job!
My guess is that you could probably say the same thing for anything else that uses a two cycle engine.
