A Virginia city is one step closer to banning gas-powered leaf blowers after a council vote earlier this month.
Saying the blowers are too noisy and cause too much pollution, the Alexandria City Council voted 5-1 on the first reading of a bill that would ultimately ban the popular outdoor equipment, ALXnow reports. The bill was schedule for a public hearing and final vote in mid-May.
If the ban is approved, gas-powered blowers wouldn't be immediately prohibited. The city government would have a one-year "phase-out" period to stop using the equipment, while Alexandria residents and businesses would have 18 months to comply.
Jesse Maines with the city's Transportation Environmental Services spoke in support of the ban, telling the council it would address "the unnecessary noise that is caused by gas-powered leaf blowers and the environmental effects or the emissions from the gas-powered leaf blowers."
Testing has shown that electric leaf blowers are much quieter than gas-powered ones, and that the noise doesn't travel as far.
And as far as the environment is concerned, there really isn't much of a contest. A recent report found that operating a commercial leaf blower for one hour created as much pollution as driving a car 1,100 miles. Edmunds' research is even more eye-popping, showing that a consumer-grade gas blower can emit up to 23 times more carbon monoxide than a Ford Raptor pickup truck.
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Electric blowers, meanwhile, burn no fuel while operating, thereby creating negligible pollution.
Alexandria city officials told ALXnow that much of the public supports the ban. There is, however, some opposition from landscaping businesses, who expressed concern over the costs of switching to electric equipment and whether the new equipment would perform as well.
According to ALXNow, Vice Mayor Sarah Bagley has suggested that the city can explore ways to aid businesses during the transition from gas to electric equipment, noting, "Might this city be able to do purchasing at a scale that would lower the cost that we can then sell? If there's a purchasing model that allows us to facilitate for Alexandria registered businesses, reduced price, if we're able to leverage our purchasing power somehow."
Another city council member noted they would look into incentive programs to help businesses handle the cost associated with making the transition.
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Heck yes! 💯 If Alexandria does pass the ban, it would join a growing list of cities putting their feet down on this high-polluting equipment. Nearby Washington, D.C., has had a ban in place since 2022, and in Arlington, Mass., the second phase of a three-stage ban went into effect earlier this year.
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