Colorado recently took a small step toward cleaner air when state officials approved a plan to start phasing out gas-powered lawn equipment.
According to a Colorado Newsline report, the state's Air Quality Control Commission adopted a new rule that bans state agencies from using gas-powered lawn and garden equipment with an engine of 25 horsepower or less during the summer, between June 1 and Aug. 31.
Meanwhile, the local governments of nine counties in the Front Range region of the state will have a similar ban, but for engines with 10 horsepower or less. The new policy will go into effect in 2025.
According to CoPIRG, it is the first statewide ban of its kind in the country. However, California passed a law banning the sale of gas-powered leaf blowers, lawnmowers, and other small off-road engines that took effect Jan. 1, 2024. Washington, D.C., and numerous cities across the country are also in the process of enacting similar bans.
Colorado lawmakers failed to pass a broader ban on polluting lawn equipment, but they have passed a tax credit for a 30% point-of-sale discount on electric yard tools to help with the transition.
It's not just lawmakers; the market is also shifting toward electric lawn equipment as companies like John Deere and Home Depot gear up for a gas-less future.
The ban is an essential first step for Colorado toward a complete shift away from gas-powered lawn equipment, which is responsible for significant levels of noise and air pollution.
If you live in a residential neighborhood, you often can't escape the annoying sound of leaf blowers and lawnmowers that pierces your eardrums. While you can't see or hear the air pollution, you can't escape that either.
According to a report published by the Public Interest Network, operating a lawn mower for one hour produces as much pollution as an average car driving 300 miles — about the distance from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. A leaf blower is even worse as it spits out as much smog-forming pollution in an hour as driving 1,100 miles — which would get you from L.A. to Denver.
One of the many pollutants produced by the equipment is particulate matter (PM2.5). According to the American Lung Association, particle pollution is associated with "increased mortality from all causes, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and lung cancer."
In 2020, lawn equipment produced 21,800 tons of PM2.5 in the U.S., which is equal to the pollution created by 234 million typical cars, per the report.
Co-author of the report and clean air advocate for CoPIRG Kirsten Schatz said, "It doesn't make sense to allow tons of pollution that damages our health just from cutting grass and blowing leaves around when cleaner, quieter electric options are readily available," per Colorado Newsline.
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