Can We End Gas Mowers In Portland? Leaf Blowers?

This afternoon, taking advantage of the the beautiful sunny day I took a walk in my neighborhood. Indeed the weather was great, but it seemed like everywhere I turned here in residential Southeast Portland, there was a chorus of loud, belching gasoline-powered lawn mowers and leaf blowers. People may not like the wintry rain, but at least you can walk down the sidewalk without taking a lung full of carbon monoxide, dust and swirling grass trimmings.

It got me thinking: If Portland is really a leading sustainable city, why not set a goal of curbing or even ending use of gas-powered mowers? Retiring these crude cutting machines would be a small but effective step in further cutting use of fossil fuels as well as pollution. And saving my psyche. How would we go about it? I'm not sure if incentives for manual or battery-powered mowers would be enough, yet an outright ban might not be realistic either.

Leaf blowers are just as loud and obnoxious as gas mowers, if not worse. But is there technology out there to do the same job without the noise and gasoline? My understanding is mowers have come further, although a good old rake or broom surely would more often than not suffice for a leaf blower in my book. Or might there be some Scandinavian or Japanese industrial designer coming up with a silent, solar-powered leaf blower as we speak? Speaking of industrial designers, how about we get Sohrab Vossoughi and the gang over at local award winning firm Ziba started on this right away?

In my neighborhood a good portion of houses seem to rely on lawn-care companies that sweep in every couple weeks during the spring and summer with an arsenal of big, loud lawn equipment. Many of these are small businesses with largely minority workforces, and I wouldn't want regulations or bans to harm what they do. Even so, I feel like walking through my neighborhood is an obstacle course for my ears and allergies whenever they're around. Is this the only way to keep a clean yard or sidewalk?

Comments

[Mike M]

This begs the question, Is it more sustainable for me to use about two gallons of gas a year with my gas mower, or to throw away a perfectly good machine to buy a new machine? Yes a push mower has less parts, but the embodied energy in replacing my mower is much higher than using what I have.

When and if my mower ever goes south, I might replace is with a push mower, but just throwing this machine out and replacing it is actually worse for the environment than using it until it is worn out.

[Montag]

There are also electric lawn mowers - they seem to be just as noisy as the gas ones but at least they don't pollute (at least at the location where they are being used).

[Raymond Brigleb]

Oh I couldn't agree with you more.

When we were house-sitting for a professor in the West Hills a few years back, for about nine months, my most vivid memory of that part of town was the gas-powered mowers, blowers, clippers, and trucks that filled the air with noise and pollution. All week long. And then it stopped on the weekend, because that's when the homeowners were around! Nice and quiet, for two days. And then it started back up again.

The house I own isn't in a fancy part of town these days, but at least the loudest thing around during the week is the dogs. And of course, some mowers on the weekend....

[kathleen mazzocco]

The noise pollution these things create have spoiled many a would-be-idyllic day swinging in a hammock. After all the $$$ I've spent ripping out the lawn to plant native species, I'd like to be able to enjoy them from the outside!

[Kristin]

I'm pretty happy to live in a neighborhood with "lower" lawn care standards. There are fewer chemicals as well.

[gadds]

The least sustainable part of a lawnmower is the lawn.

The embodied energy in a push mower is generally negligible (compared to it's fuel cost) and it's wholly recyclable. So, "tossing it" isn't such a bad option if you throw it in the right place.

Lawn mowers are nasty. The exhaust is hideous: it's far far dirtier than car exhaust. The gas burns improperly and it's probably a two-stroke engine...which means it's shooting oil out the exhaust as well. Some 2-strokes create more solids pollution in 2 hours than a car does in a year.

The most sustainable source of fuel for mowing lawns is around one's waist.

[Doug Tovey]

That may be the most foolish and selfish article I have ever read. Maybe some of us enjoy a beautiful lawn as much as you enjoy a peaceful walk. My family spends hours upon hours playing together on our lush, green, well kept lawn - it is by far the most used of any "play toy" we have. Getting rid of my gas "mowers" would enslave me to hours of manual labor that would rob me of time with my family.

A better solution might be outlawing peaceful walks down my street by self righteous do gooders.

[PG]

Even hypothetically, to aim some sustainability mandate at anything other than the vast overuse of cars and trucks is to be lost in fruitless green tokenism. I think we might want to skip it for now...

[brett]

You will pry my mower from my cold, dead hands. Jesus Christ - you people really want to suck every last bit of fun and convenience out of life in the name of bogus sustainability. Now get off my lawn.

> Many of these are small businesses with largely minority workforces, and I wouldn't want regulations or bans to harm what they do.

Ah, yes, the classic lefty conundrum - Gaia or illegal immigrants?

[Steve]

Outlaw lawnmowers, and only outlaws will have lawnmowers.

But seriously, we'd be better off discouraging lawns by way of outlawing lawn irrigation.

The "lush, green, well kept lawn" Doug speaks of is a symbol of wealth -- the "conspicuously unconsumed pasture" (c.f. Thorstein Veblen and B.F. Skinner) -- and is also one of the most toxic places in a city.

The vast majority of pesticide use takes place in cities, and residential lawns are one of the biggest chemical dumping grounds.

Modern push mowers are light-weight, and require not much more physical effort to use than gas-powered mowers. Electric mowers are also a viable alternative, and cause less noise and point-source pollution.

But reducing or eliminating grass is probably the best alternative.

[brett]

> But reducing or eliminating grass is probably the best alternative.

Don't you understand how absurd you people sound? Eliminate grass? Why not eliminate all parks and baseball fields while you're at it? Soccer fields? Dog parks?

[Staheli Pizzutillo]

Interesting comments. It has been noisy in the neighborhood, but that's Spring in Portland, when the grass grows so fast you need to mow it again by the time you finish mowing it in the first place.

For those who find gas mowers to be such a huge convenience, I suspect that you haven't tried a push-reel mower. Keep the blades sharp, and it takes no longer to mow your average Portland lawn with a push-reel than with a gas mower. Oh, and you spend less time on maintenance too boot.

[Lou]

With breathing problems I certainly would like to see ALL gas-powered tools banned from the environment. The pollution caused is extensive. And, "pollution" includes noise pollution as well as air. My neighbor loves to get a head start on the day by blowing the driveway clean at 7:00 a.m. Also, those who work out at a gym could work out pushing a mower and save themselves a buck or two. Wouldn't that be novel? Push mowers are a lot safer too, as a friend learned when she cut off her toe by stepping into a hole and mowing over her foot.

[Angie]

Sheesh. Who'd have thought people would get up on their hind legs about grass?

I own a reel mower and I love it. I've had to borrow a friend's gasser to do my back yard because it's so uneven and we've had construction going on such that the grass gets way too tall for the reel mower. It was a real eye opener. I hate using the gasser. It seems like a very unpleasant chore. Now, granted, I have a pretty small yard, so I'm not spending hours mowing regardless of which I use. I also have to confess that I like yardwork. Some find it only a chore and little else. I've always liked having my hands in the dirt and find it takes my mind off my troubles for a while.

Like Doug, I like having a nice looking yard, and with a baby due in a few months I look forward to plopping him down in that yard and playing with him. However, if you're concerned about the amount of time you might have to spend on your yard without the convenience of a gas or electric mower, one solution might be to have your family help with the yard work. If you're kids are old enough it's a good way to get them to understand the relationship between work and benefit - we take care of our yard and then we get to play on it.

And, come on Doug. Pardon me for being annoyed at the noise, smell and dust of a neighbor's mower when I'm hoping to relax. Don't tell me you've never had the same feeling.

Lastly, eliminating grass? It's certainly an option for homeowners. It would be easier if you had less grass, wouldn't it? Again, with kids, it's nice to have some of it to roll around on or play ball, etc. Grass is excellent for controlling soil erosion, though.

Let's all have fun working in our yards this weekend!

[jojo]

Grass is a symbol of wealth? Add blackberries and English ivy to that and I'd be right up there with Buffett and Icahn. What a ridiculous statement.

Perhaps you are right, maybe we should all pave over the lawns with maintenance-free concrete and then drive our cars to the nearest park to find a place where our children can run.

[so much quieter]

I made the switch to a push mower when I moved to portland mostly because I needed to buy a mower. My push mower was only 79 dollars and it works great, plus it is quiet. If your lawn is too large for you to push mow it, your lawn is too large for a city.

[matt mc]

amen brother! i know the neighborhood you speak! that sound is deep and lasts all day long. then when you think of the pollution that is being created with that sound, it is hard not to be overwhelmed by frustration.

i would fully support any ban on gas powered mowers and leaf blowers. there are so many better, easier, and healthier alternatives.

[Staheli Pizzutillo]

Angie,

Yes. Grass is a symbol of wealth. Ever been out of the US before?

[Brian Libby]

Actually I'm ambivalent about whether or not people have grass. I don't want to tell people what to do with their yard. I just don't want them to make so much noise and pollution that it bothers me next door or across the street, or as I walk down a public sidewalk.

[Brian Libby]

Oh, and to Doug Tovey particularly. Hold on there, fella. It's not foolish or selfish to hate noise and air pollution. If you and your family want to enjoy playtime on your little personal putting green, be my guest. Just keep quiet! I don't see how speaking for the strong concerns of many, many people who hate these bellowing gas machines is self-righteous. I'm speaking for many, and you're speaking for yourself.

[Brian Libby]

Great minds think alike? Here is some info from Shelby Wood's PDX Green blog for the Oregonian, with some additional info on mowing alternatives:

http://blog.oregonlive.com/pdxgreen/2008/05/eat_your_greens_summertime_gaspowered_lawnmower.html

[jojo]

Staheli,

First of all, apologize to Angie, it was not her post.

Second, why yes, I have been to approximately 40 countries. You? Is there no grass outside of the US? Is the US the only "rich" country in the world? It might not be as prevelant as in the US, but part of that is due to climate, population density, and city planning, NOT because of wealth. Grass seed (enough to cover 1000 sq ft) = $10. That latte you are sipping = $5. Which is the symbol of wealth?

None of what I have said is a comment on the maintenance of lawns in the US, which I agree is ridiculous (I use a push mower, and no chemicals, plenty of crab grass, etc., in my lawn). I was simply commenting on the notion that grass is a symbol of wealth and the concept that eliminating lawns is the answer.

[Steve]

You can argue with Thorstein Veblen and B.F. Skinner about whether a piece of choice pasture, conspicuously unconsumed, is a symbol of wealth.

I didn't conceive of the concept; I merely cited it.

[jojo]

I'd love to, but they are dead, so I am stuck with this blog. Don't quote it if you aren't prepared to support it.

Veblen, who died in 1929, never saw the rise of the American middle class, where not only the wealthy could have a single family home with a lawn. 'Theory of the Leisure Class', from which the Skinner quote is base, was published in 1899, when class distinction was vastly more prevelant and the quote was vastly more relevant.

Why is the term 'unconsumed' taken literally here? Does it have to mean grazing land? I don't believe so. Consumption can mean a safe, comfortable place for my child to play in.

[jojo]

Oh, and to continue ...

The Skinner quote, from 'Walden Two', almost has no relevance to this discussion (conspicuous consumption). Sure, it mentions the Veblen concept and the absurdity of the lawnmower, but that is not the message of the scene. In fact, the character even says after mentioning these facts, "But I digress".

The real message of the scene deals with conditioned actions and tradition (using a sheep and electric fence analogy).

If anyone would like to read the quote in context, try:

http://www.twinoaks.org/clubs/walden-two/waldentwo-live.html