Support for Leaf Blower Ban In Sebastopol

[Shepherd]

Open Letter to Sebastopol City Council
To Support Leaf Blower Ban

From Shepherd Bliss, 829-8185, P.O. Box 474, Sebastopol, CA. 95473.

For over 15 years now I have lived on my organic farm in the serene Sebastopol countryside. Last month I purchased a condo within the city limits with the intention of eventually moving there. My plan has been to rent it out for six months or so. I accepted the rental application of two women from Mendocino village to move in November 1. They wanted to live in a larger town, thus being less isolated and remote.

After their first day of leaf-blower assault, they decided to move back to the more peaceful Mendocino, complaining of too much noise pollution. They lost a month’s rent and left me without tenants. So I am delighted that the Sebastopol City council is considering a leaf blower ban. It has health, environmental, and commercial merit. If it does not pass such a ban, I doubt that I will be able to move into my condo, since leaf blowers also terrorize me.

Numerous peace-loving cities have such a ban, including my birth-town of Santa Monica, Tiburon and Mill Valley in nearby Marin, Berkeley, Palo Alto, Foster City, Los Altos, Menlo Park, Sunnyvale, and at least a dozen other cities in California, as well as many elsewhere in the United States, both small and large.

My research in the l980s on the negative health impacts of excessive industrial noise convinced me of the multiple dangers of such sound, before leaf blowers were so prominent and menacing. Many studies prove the harmful effects of noise. I published some of my research in various health publications and a best-selling book I edited for Penguin in l985 titled “The New Holistic Health Handbook.”

“Our society is driving itself crazy with noise,” declared Dr. Walter Carlin, Director of the Speech and Hearing Institute back in the l980s; since then noise pollution has gotten much worse. It “not only causes the loss of hearing, but triggers other physical ailments, stress in marriage, lack of sleep, and falling productivity,” according to Dr. Carlin. My own father was hard of hearing from his service during World War II next to anti-aircraft weapons. Many musicians in loud rock bands are also hard of hearing.

Research documents that excessive noise can negatively influence the nervous system, the endocrine system, the stomach and the emotions. Noise adversely affects the heart and blood vessels, contributing to high pressure and increases in cholesterol level. In other words, noise can be deadly. Dr. Carlin reminds us that “sound was used for centuries as a method of torture. Place a bell over a person’s head and ring it, and eventually the person will go crazy.” Leaf blowers drive me crazy, breaking my concentration, capacity to think, and serenity.

Some people erroneously believe that noise such as that created by leaf blowers does not impact them personally, because they merely adapt. They do so at a substantial cost, re-wiring their nervous systems to adjust to the assault. Loud sounds such as leaf-blowers emit are particularly bad for certain groups of people, such as pregnant women. The leaf blower ban proposal provides us the opportunity to further research the negative health implications of the growing noises in urban environments. As with restrictions on smoking and drinking in certain places, such a ban would be beneficial to public health.

On the other hand, for those who are hard of hearing, one of its blessings is that your nervous system does not have to adapt and thus suffer the harmful consequences.

Sound trauma is a form of post-traumatic stress that military veterans, such as myself, and others experience. Leaf blowers can be one of the worst triggers of post-traumatic stress. Their sounds can evoke memories of military training and even combat. Triggering a vet can be harmful to that person, as well as potentially to others.

Fortunately, there are old-fashioned alternatives to leaf blowers—like rakes and brooms. They do not contribute to the over-use of fossil fuels and the creation of greenhouse gases, thus worsening chaotic climate change. In fact, such muscle alternatives can be health inducing.

Other alternatives to loud leaf blowers might be newer ones with mufflers or vacuuming leaves. On the other hand, leaves left alone become mulch that can feed lawns and plants, creating soil. Last week I was given over a dozen big bags of leaves, which I promptly deposited on the berms around my boysenberries. My farm is willing to accept donations from others seeking a final resting place for their leaves, which will break down to become the soil that nourishes tasty berries.

When Sebastopol does finally pass such a ban--this year or in the future--I would implore it to put teeth into the ban and make stiff fines that are strictly enforced. As the California Department of Health’s Model Community Noise Control ordinance declared in the mid-1980s, “Certain sound levels and vibrations are detrimental to the public health, welfare, safety and quality of life.”

I implore each of our five City Council members to promptly support a ban on leaf blowers and make it a unanimous decision that enhances our peace of mind here in lovely Sebastopol by protecting our citizens from their negative impacts.

[Hot Compost]

since i grew up with assigned tasks like pulling weeds and raking leaves, i never saw the appeal of Roundup and Leaf-blowers. i endure the sound of a gas-powered leaf-blower about once a month. pray i have the presence of mind to record the sound next time, in case i want to get some raw sounds for a really OBNOXIOUS Christmas carol.

one thing that may come up in the Sebast. city debate is - what about electric leaf blowers ? although i personally still prefer rakes, electric leaf blowers are much less noisy, sort of like an outdoor vacuum cleaner, and should probably be accounted for in the initial Ban proposition if you go that far with it.

e.g. ban gas-powered leaf blowers, you'll probably get a majority. and some landscapers and building maintenance people will charge more because the tasks they used to use leaf-blowers for will cost more (in monetary terms).

Option #2 - ban all leaf blowers, gas & electric. i'm not sure how the vote would go on that one.

[Tars]

I don't live within the Sebastopol city limits. If I did, I would use a rake. To me, leaf blowers are the Hummers of gardening, wasteful of resources, and pointlessly extravagant. To anyone who hires people, or feels the need to use up unnecessary resources to do their gardening, I'd suggest rethinking how their property is landscaped.

All that said, I think using your tenants' decision to move back to Mendocino is irrelevant to the point. Your tenants made a major lifestyle mistake if they thought that Sebastopol would be anything near as quiet as Mendocino. Unfortunately, partly at your expense, they screwed up by not doing their research ahead of their move. Sebastopol is a major crossroads, and is a bedroom community for people who work anywhere from Sonoma County to SF. Mendocino is, as you put it, a "village", off the main traffic thoroughfare for that area. Commuting traffic is at a minimum.

[jryeo]

I don't live within the Sebastopol city limits. If I did, I would use a rake. To me, leaf blowers are the Hummers of gardening, wasteful of resources, and pointlessly extravagant. To anyone who hires people, or feels the need to use up unnecessary resources to do their gardening, I'd suggest rethinking how their property is landscaped.

How are leaf blowers different than any other mechanized gardening device? What about lawn mowers, string trimmers, edgers and hedge trimmers? Or should they be banned also, because heaven forbid lazy Americans use technology to make life easier.

Did you drive your car to work from your rural residence? You certainly contributed much more greenhouse gas than the hispanic kid with a leaf blower today.

It seems like people in Sebastopol complain when the sun comes up in the morning. If it didn't come up, they'd complain about that also. Sebastopol uppity hippies who want nothing but comfort and to ignore realities of the world. Please open your eyes and become aware to how the world is, not some idyllic dream.

The people who will suffer from this are low paid landscape workers, who are not likely to see a wage increase for the extra work they now have to do. Classic case of the wealthy stomping on the poor.

[Clancy]

How are leaf blowers different than any other mechanized gardening device? What about lawn mowers, string trimmers, edgers and hedge trimmers?

They're much louder. Most lawnmowers have mufflers and the edgers and trimmers aren't nearly as loud either.

[phloem]

Actually, driving a motor vehicle may very well pollute less than a leaf blower, depending on distance driven and time the leaf blower runs. Leaf blowers and other 2-cycle engines burn fuel very inefficiently, and contribute unburned hydrocarbons to the atmosphere at a substantially higher rate than automobile engines. Of course, 2-cycle engines overall do not contribute the same total hydrocarbon inputs to air pollution, but for their size, they completely "blow" autos out in terms of pollutants.

I'd also rather hire a poor gardener who's not afraid of a bit more exercise and uses a broom or educates clients about the wastefulness of lawns so that the use of polluting and noisy internal combustion engines can be curtailed. I did just fine for many years without the use of either a mower or a blower, and made many converts to ecologically sensible landscape care.

Peter

How are leaf blowers different than any other mechanized gardening device? What about lawn mowers, string trimmers, edgers and hedge trimmers? Or should they be banned also, because heaven forbid lazy Americans use technology to make life easier.

Did you drive your car to work from your rural residence? You certainly contributed much more greenhouse gas than the hispanic kid with a leaf blower today.

It seems like people in Sebastopol complain when the sun comes up in the morning. If it didn't come up, they'd complain about that also. Sebastopol uppity hippies who want nothing but comfort and to ignore realities of the world. Please open your eyes and become aware to how the world is, not some idyllic dream.

The people who will suffer from this are low paid landscape workers, who are not likely to see a wage increase for the extra work they now have to do. Classic case of the wealthy stomping on the poor.

[Dynamique]

Maybe what is really needed is a NOISE ordinance where the decibels of noise, regardless of the source of the noise, is what is regulated/controlled rather than individual types of devices, applications, etc.

How are leaf blowers different than any other mechanized gardening device? What about lawn mowers, string trimmers, edgers and hedge trimmers? Or should they be banned also, because heaven forbid lazy Americans use technology to make life easier. ...

[jryeo]

Maybe what is really needed is a NOISE ordinance where the decibels of noise, regardless of the source of the noise, is what is regulated/controlled rather than individual types of devices, applications, etc.

That would make a lot more sense. Living on a busy road, I've adapted well to traffic noise, except for motorcycles and diesel trucks. Compared to open pipes on a motorcycle, leafblowers are minor.

From The Silence of the Leaf Blowers

Arrayed against grass-roots organizers are a fleet of quiet blowers that promise to produce four times less noise than older models.



Echo's quietest power model, the PB-460LN Quiet 1, operates at a volume of 65 decibels, which is quieter than typical freeway traffic. Modifications designed to dampen blowers' volume include adding soft materials to absorb sound and putting mufflers on air intakes.



Echo isn't the only one working on a quiet blower. Power equipment maker Husqvarna began selling a new blower this year, the 356BTx, that operates at 64 decibels. Older models were as loud as 78 decibels. (Decibels are measured on a logarithmic scale, so a move from 78 to 64 is several orders of magnitude quieter.)

[Zeno Swijtink]

Maybe what is really needed is a NOISE ordinance where the decibels of noise, regardless of the source of the noise, is what is regulated/controlled rather than individual types of devices, applications, etc.

First, as I understand it from the SW&T article, Sebastopol only is considering (or was a decision reached last night?) banning gas-powered leaf blowers, not the electric type.

The gas-powered leaf blowers are much more obnoxious. They tend to be not only louder, but also create air pollution.

"Emission from the two-stroke combustion engine include PM as well as gaseous carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and hydrocarbons (CO, NOx, and HC). Leaf blowers also raise (entrain) dust from the ground. And evaporative emissions of fuel occur during the refueling process, which sometimes spills gas on the operators, and from the fuel tank."

According to U.S. News & World Report a "single gas-powered leaf blower (...) can emit as much pollution in a year as 80 cars." (I am not sure what that means exactly)

It's an old-fashioned, poisonous technology. Sebastopol should remove gas-powered lawn mowers too. Electric blowers, when used incorrectly, can also stir up polluted city dust.

[Hot Compost]

one option that is more likely to gain the support of landscape contractors & commercial gardeners - whose vote you may need to pass an ordinance - is to confine the use of gas-powered leaf-blowers to certain times of day.

e.g., noon to 1 PM.

it would be like a town clock, except, more like a loud motorcycle.

and maybe make a recognition of people who work swing & graveyard shifts, so that they have the right to say "ix-nay" to daytime use of the noisier leaf-blowers within a certain distance of their house.

[brian]

i am very much in favor of banning gas leaf blowers, gas trimmers and even gas lawn mowers. because grass grows and leaves fall, horrible gross emitter 2 cycle pollution on every block every day and at virtually every opportunity should not be the result.

the gas leaf blower trend/explosion is not a good thing.(electric is ok)these emmissions can represent a health hazard for others not involved who are simply trying to breathe. the exhaust created and often long durations of use is not confined to the employers property. others can be effected who may not want to experience through having to breathe this in, a litteral hell on earth, a shortened life, lung sickness.
although i would prefer peace and quiet and not the unconditional whine(save your impending whine joke)of these at all times somewhere in the neighborhood, the noise is not my issue.

my issue are the emissions or exhaust. 2 cycle equipment puts out as much as 90x the hydro carbons of an average car. i know i should have the right not to be assaulted, effected, have my day ruined, have to make sure my widows are closed tight, gag choke and die just because the next mexican immigrant(which like it or not is the primary sorce)or whoever and their employers who often are not home at the time to enjoy the fumes and deciples are looking to make or save $$.

i have been sickened, pissed off, irritated too many times to count. the sickest i have ever been in my life was from two mexican immigrants with gas trimmers. my moms house isnt air tight and was down wind. they trimmed my neighbors hedge all afternoon to perfection but besides poisoning our cats who were on the front porch, i ended up getting very sick for a whole week. then like every week they were back again the very next wedsday with more of the same. even though my neighbor and the immigrants considered the hell i should not have had to go through a joke i didnt.

since employers, workers and judging by those posting pro leaf blower comments dont seem to care at all about anothers right not to be hurt/have their lives effected or shortened by the daily assault of particulates, stress, anger, horrid exhaust, the next employer on the block making the gas powered only(never electric)immigrant choice, legislation should be made. since there seems to be no end in sight to a possibly corrupt mexican immigrant exodus ie even more gas leaf blowers the law has to step in.

someone who speaks spanish has to explain to them and their employers the third world emission trend is not acceptable. this is not the third world and should not be turned into one. we need progression not regression/recession. more immigrants exodusing choosing money over the health of others do not seem concerned with environment and ones right to not be effected or sickened. as the immigrant population explodes this will eventually have to be addressed.

yes i'm against a possibly corrupt mexican takeover(obama/napolatano/nafta)it hurts the environment, tax payers/americans but because more immigrants are seeking yard maintanance work and employers are seeking cheaper labor, extreme pollution is not the answer. this has to be put in check.

["Mad" Miles]

more immigrants exodusing choosing money over the health of others do not seem concerned with environment and ones right to not be effected or sickened. as the immigrant population explodes this will eventually have to be addressed.

yes i'm against a possibly corrupt mexican takeover(obama/napolatano/nafta)it hurts the environment, tax payers/americans but because more immigrants are seeking yard maintanance work and employers are seeking cheaper labor, extreme pollution is not the answer. this has to be put in check.

Brian,

I will not sit idly by while you express what are to me, and I suspect many others, clearly racist and xenophobic claims.

I've never driven by a group of day laborers, who were waiting to be hired, with gas powered leaf blowers slung over their shoulders.

If you don't like the noise and pollution, and I agree with you on that, may I suggest you direct your concerns to their employers?

As for President Obama being the cause of, "possibly corrupt Mexican takeover", uh, what have you been ingesting?

There's plenty of domestic corruption available in our country, it does not need to be imported. Check out Scorsese's "Gangs Of New York" for a little historical perspective.

By the way; punctuation, spelling, grammar, syntax - when done right they make even the most extreme and foolish claims look much more plausible than when those claims are made without them.

"Mad" Miles

[Zeno Swijtink]

Brian,

I will not sit idly (...) racist and zenophobic claims.

By the way; punctuation, spelling, grammar, syntax - when done right they make even the most extreme and foolish claims look much more plausible than when those claims are made without them.

"Mad" Miles

That's "xenophobic," please - Zeno

[brian]

i am very much in favor of banning gas leaf blowers, gas trimmers and even gas lawn mowers. because grass grows and leaves fall, horrible gross emitter 2 cycle pollution on every block every day and at virtually every opportunity should not be the result.

the gas leaf blower trend/explosion is not a good thing.(electric is ok)these emmissions can represent a health hazard for others not involved who are simply trying to breathe. the exhaust created and often long durations of use is not confined to the employers property. others can be effected who may not want to experience through having to breathe this in, a litteral hell on earth, a shortened life, lung sickness.
although i would prefer peace and quiet and not the unconditional whine(save your impending whine joke)of these at all times somewhere in the neighborhood, the noise is not my issue.

my issue are the emissions or exhaust. 2 cycle equipment puts out as much as 90x the hydro carbons of an average car. i know i should have the right not to be assaulted, effected, have my day ruined, have to make sure my widows are closed tight, gag choke and die just because the next mexican immigrant(which like it or not is the primary sorce)or whoever and their employers who often are not home at the time to enjoy the fumes and deciples are looking to make or save $$.

i have been sickened, pissed off, irritated too many times to count. the sickest i have ever been in my life was from two mexican immigrants with gas trimmers. my moms house isnt air tight and was down wind. they trimmed my neighbors hedge all afternoon to perfection but besides poisoning our cats who were on the front porch, i ended up getting very sick for a whole week. then like every week they were back again the very next wedsday with more of the same. even though my neighbor and the immigrants considered the hell i should not have had to go through a joke i didnt.

since employers, workers and judging by those posting pro leaf blower comments dont seem to care at all about anothers right not to be hurt/have their lives effected or shortened by the daily assault of particulates, stress, anger, horrid exhaust, the next employer on the block making the gas powered only(never electric)immigrant choice, legislation should be made. since there seems to be no end in sight to a possibly corrupt mexican immigrant exodus ie even more gas leaf blowers the law has to step in.

someone who speaks spanish has to explain to them and their employers the third world emission trend is not acceptable. this is not the third world and should not be turned into one. we need progression not regression/recession. more immigrants exodusing choosing money over the health of others do not seem concerned with environment and ones right to not be effected or sickened. as the immigrant population explodes this will eventually have to be addressed.

yes i'm against a possibly corrupt mexican takeover(obama/napolatano/nafta)it hurts the environment, tax payers/americans but because more immigrants are seeking yard maintanance work and employers are seeking cheaper labor, extreme pollution is not the answer. this has to be put in check.

sorry guys ive been raped too many times by mexim leafblowers and their employers of course. an ordinarily reasonably safe environment ruined again by mexim leafblower exhaust. it hurts other people therefore it violates. i have gotten sick so many times. i will not sit iddly by and take your sh*t. how can you even dispute what im saying. you know damn well its primarily mexim. gross pollution may be the norm in the third world but dont bring that sh*t here. turn on your gas blower etc for hours in mexico not in my backyard. about the spelling thats of course not the point like you attempt to make it. you may have a good teaching job getting paid to support this tresspass but i'm not paid. peel off that obama bumpersticker it makes you look like a damn fool.
did any one see the monster chemtrail above santa rosa this evening? thats going on my youtube page for sure. damn.

["Mad" Miles]

That's "xenophobic," please - Zeno

Zeno,

I sit corrected.

I've never claimed to be a great speller, so I'm always willing to accept being told when I'm demonstrably wrong!

And I just checked dictionary.com to see if I had "demonstrably", correctly spelled. Something I failed to do for xenophobic.

I'm also not a perfect grammarian. Some of my punctuation is idiosyncratic. Note my placing the comma after the second quotation mark in the first sentence of the previous paragraph. Incorrect, but from my view more logical than the established convention.

I'm sure I'm often inadvertently incorrect in other ways. (Had to dictionary.com "inadvertently", as well!!)

But I do make the effort more than others I could name, but will not.

Ta,

Miles

["Mad" Miles]

peel off that obama bumpersticker it makes you look like a damn fool.

Brian,

I am a partisan of the Green Party of the United States of America. I voted for Cynthia McKinney in the last presidential election. While I've had some hope that President Obama might do some things that I approve of, he's sorely failed so far.

You do not know me. Feel free to read my voluminous posts on this board if you're interested in trying.

As for my accusation that your remarks about Mexicans are racist and xenophobic, keep writing them. You prove me right every time.

I've traveled in a few parts of the "Third World". I've lived in a country with massive urban air pollution because of two-stroke scooter engines, Taiwan. I've traveled in Mexico, although not for quite some time.

Your characterization of Mexico as "Third World", demonstrates your ignorance. Mexico is generally considered a "Second World", country. Third World is generally used for post-colonial countries with little or no economic development, overwhelming poverty, disease and mass human suffering.

While all those maladies exist in Mexico, they also do here. It is a matter of degree and the term you're misusing has an accepted definition that does not apply to Mexico.

As for my shit. I'm giving you shit for talking shitloads of ignorant shit. Blaming the victim, as you are doing with regard to undocumented workers from Mexico, is specifically what I am referring to. Continue to do so, and I will continue to call you on it.

Yet we do agree on the problem of noise and air pollution from gasoline two-stroke engines. I'm all for a reasonable, collectively decided upon, compromise between all of the people involved. A social, political and legal solution.

Talking trash about people who are only the workers doing what they're told by the bosses with the tools provided to them by the bosses.... simply makes no sense. And it betrays your racist, classist and anti-foreigner beliefs.

Feel free to prove me wrong. But try doing it with reasoned argument, not additional bias and name calling.

Did I call you names? (Racist, etc.) No, I have described what you have said. There is a difference.

Still, "if the label fits"? ...

As for my well paid teaching job enabling illegal Latino immigration (!?) you might be gratified to know I'm being laid off at the end of January. From San Quentin State Prison.

How I'm helping mojados come to El Norte while delivering a county resources list, a pencil with an eraser and a Basic Adult Life Skills workbook in the RC, escapes me.

The ones who are illegal, the "deportados", don't even get a copy of the resource list! And they don't read English, so they can't do the Bridging Education Program work even if they wanted to!?

Where do you get this stuff?

"Mad" Miles

[Sara S]

I'm a "constant proofreader" but even so, I don't get everything right.

There's a great book which was on the best-seller list for a long time: "Eats, Shoots, and Leaves". The title refers to a great joke about a panda going into a bar.......the one extra comma changes the meaning of the definition quite radically! I just donated my copy to the G'ville Library's upcoming book sale (Dec. 4 and 5) or I'd give it to you...

Zeno,

I sit corrected.

I've never claimed to be a great speller, so I'm always willing to accept being told when I'm demonstrably wrong!

And I just checked dictionary.com to see if I had "demonstrably", correctly spelled. Something I failed to do for xenophobic.

I'm also not a perfect grammarian. Some of my punctuation is idiosyncratic. Note my placing the comma after the second quotation mark in the first sentence of the previous paragraph. Incorrect, but from my view more logical than the established convention.

I'm sure I'm often inadvertently incorrect in other ways. (Had to dictionary.com "inadvertently", as well!!)

But I do make the effort more than others I could name, but will not.

Ta,

Miles

[Sara S]

Yeah, grass grows. Where I live, it also spreads fire. The only way I can hope to keep my house somewhat fire-safe in the dry months is to get rid of all that grass, so I own a gas weed-eater. I also have an electric one, but that cord doesn't reach far enough.

i am very much in favor of banning gas leaf blowers, gas trimmers and even gas lawn mowers. because grass grows and leaves fall, horrible gross emitter 2 cycle pollution on every block every day and at virtually every opportunity should not be the result.

the gas leaf blower trend/explosion is not a good thing.(electric is ok)these emmissions can represent a health hazard for others not involved who are simply trying to breathe. the exhaust created and often long durations of use is not confined to the employers property. others can be effected who may not want to experience through having to breathe this in, a litteral hell on earth, a shortened life, lung sickness.
although i would prefer peace and quiet and not the unconditional whine(save your impending whine joke)of these at all times somewhere in the neighborhood, the noise is not my issue.

my issue are the emissions or exhaust. 2 cycle equipment puts out as much as 90x the hydro carbons of an average car. i know i should have the right not to be assaulted, effected, have my day ruined, have to make sure my widows are closed tight, gag choke and die just because the next mexican immigrant(which like it or not is the primary sorce)or whoever and their employers who often are not home at the time to enjoy the fumes and deciples are looking to make or save $$.

i have been sickened, pissed off, irritated too many times to count. the sickest i have ever been in my life was from two mexican immigrants with gas trimmers. my moms house isnt air tight and was down wind. they trimmed my neighbors hedge all afternoon to perfection but besides poisoning our cats who were on the front porch, i ended up getting very sick for a whole week. then like every week they were back again the very next wedsday with more of the same. even though my neighbor and the immigrants considered the hell i should not have had to go through a joke i didnt.

since employers, workers and judging by those posting pro leaf blower comments dont seem to care at all about anothers right not to be hurt/have their lives effected or shortened by the daily assault of particulates, stress, anger, horrid exhaust, the next employer on the block making the gas powered only(never electric)immigrant choice, legislation should be made. since there seems to be no end in sight to a possibly corrupt mexican immigrant exodus ie even more gas leaf blowers the law has to step in.

someone who speaks spanish has to explain to them and their employers the third world emission trend is not acceptable. this is not the third world and should not be turned into one. we need progression not regression/recession. more immigrants exodusing choosing money over the health of others do not seem concerned with environment and ones right to not be effected or sickened. as the immigrant population explodes this will eventually have to be addressed.

yes i'm against a possibly corrupt mexican takeover(obama/napolatano/nafta)it hurts the environment, tax payers/americans but because more immigrants are seeking yard maintanance work and employers are seeking cheaper labor, extreme pollution is not the answer. this has to be put in check.

[Hot Compost]

Yeah, grass grows. Where I live, it also spreads fire. The only way I can hope to keep my house somewhat fire-safe in the dry months is to get rid of all that grass, so I own a gas weed-eater. I also have an electric one, but that cord doesn't reach far enough.

this gets to the heart of the matter.

there's a video of a young woman swinging a scythe to cut down tall grass with startling grace & efficiency. she sharpens it also & is clearly in her element. but, since i can't find the URL ...

i think a ban on 2 cycle engines for leaf blowers could be passed but it would need to have exceptions, for examples just like this. i guess the gas weed-eaters are usually used further from town center though, i don't mean lawnmowers, i mean for situations where you have an acre of grass and need to cut it before there's a fire, or even worse, a visit from Sonoma County Zoning.

["Mad" Miles]

There's a great book which was on the best-seller list for a long time: "Eats, Shoots, and Leaves". ... I just donated my copy to the G'ville Library ... or I'd give it to you...

Sara,

Thank you, but I've a copy sitting on my bookshelf. It was a gift from the English Department at Montgomery High School when I taught there in '05-'06. I also remember hearing the author being interviewed when it was published.

When it comes to grammar, I tend to try and follow the rules, but not fetishize them. Spelling, I try, but don't always succeed, especially in this instantaneous medium.

I took Zeno's comment as a wry joke. I was chiding Brian for his poor English, and yet at the same time misspelled one of my key accusations. I suspect the irony of that compelled him to reply. And I love irony! My response was both to heighten the humor by taking his poke at face value, when in the scheme of things it's a tangential issue to the matter at hand.

I have much more to say about the dynamic between being a stickler for the rules, and the greater importance of the actual content of one's writing over form. But it's pouring down. It's beautiful. I need to fetch the paper. And my morning electronic communications traffic clearing ritual is still incomplete.


Brian,

Thank you for your private email. I too have been harmed by exhaust and noise. I am sensitive to petro-chemical fumes, particularly gas and diesel exhaust. I'm being poisoned at work by the exhaust from ancient maintenance trucks that use the same airspace as my office. They didn't warn me, or ask my permission. All efforts to reasonably address the problem have been stifled. Another aspect of prison teaching I will not miss in the least!

G'Day All,

"Mad" Miles

P.S. Zeno, Sara and anybody else who might have the slightest interest, I have not spell-checked or review edited this post, other than what I normally do while composing. Feel free to point out my mistakes!

[phloem]

The implication is that the only way to trim larger areas of grass, weeds, and even brush is by resorting to the internal combustion engine. Recently I attended a demonstration of a European-style scythe, and I'm convinced that grass-mowing technology went downhill with the advent of gas-powered engines. Not only did the scythe do the job, it's easier on the body (a gentle back-and-forth swing-dancing motion is all the effort required) and of course, on air quality. I'm about to invest in one for my weed removal work. Check out scythes at Order High Quality Scythes, Sickles, and other tools from The Marugg Company, Tracy City, TN.
I also understand that a 12-year-old girl with a scythe participated in a grass-mowing competition, up against weed-eaters and mowers (I think this was in Canada somewhere). In the end, she blew the competition away, cutting grass at a much faster rate, and then stood triumphantly in her spotless dress while her competitors were peeling sweat- and dirt-soaked clothes away. The "superiority" of the gas-powered engine is an illusion perpetrated to make others wealthy, without regard for the environment upon which we depend, and we don't need to buy it.

Yeah, grass grows. Where I live, it also spreads fire. The only way I can hope to keep my house somewhat fire-safe in the dry months is to get rid of all that grass, so I own a gas weed-eater. I also have an electric one, but that cord doesn't reach far enough.

[Shepherd]

I have used a scythe for many years on my organic farm. I find it the best way to cut grass between my berry rows and in certain other places. It is a fun instrument, if used properly, and sharpened often. There are various versions and sizes. I like the swishing sounds that it makes. Walt Whitman has written poetry about the sweet sounds of cutting grass.

Since I do need to give careful attention to fire control, I must admit that I sometimes do put on my ear muffs and mow with a gas-powered, self-propelled mower. I am not a purist. Though loud, the sound of the mower is not as bad for me as the whining sound of the leaf blowers, which literally terrorize me.
Shepherd

The implication is that the only way to trim larger areas of grass, weeds, and even brush is by resorting to the internal combustion engine. Recently I attended a demonstration of a European-style scythe, and I'm convinced that grass-mowing technology went downhill with the advent of gas-powered engines. Not only did the scythe do the job, it's easier on the body (a gentle back-and-forth swing-dancing motion is all the effort required) and of course, on air quality. I'm about to invest in one for my weed removal work. Check out scythes at Order High Quality Scythes, Sickles, and other tools from The Marugg Company, Tracy City, TN.
I also understand that a 12-year-old girl with a scythe participated in a grass-mowing competition, up against weed-eaters and mowers (I think this was in Canada somewhere). In the end, she blew the competition away, cutting grass at a much faster rate, and then stood triumphantly in her spotless dress while her competitors were peeling sweat- and dirt-soaked clothes away. The "superiority" of the gas-powered engine is an illusion perpetrated to make others wealthy, without regard for the environment upon which we depend, and we don't need to buy it.

[Daniel Monroe]

Thank you very very much for letting me get this important HUMAN issue off my chest !


Just a small and very SAD correction, I am from Menlo Park, CA and can assure you that
there is NO CITY BAN here. Trust me I am the ultimate Leaf Blower hater primarily because of the massive PROPAGANDA used to justify their daily use. I can NOT STAND the HORRIBLE noise they make either.
I can easily REMEMBER the Heaven on Earth that Menlo Park WAS prior to the 1994 INVASION of these very HOSTILE workers. I just loved the very LAZY and RELAXING days that we all ENJOYED prior to this Industrial "HURRICANE" came to town. I can not understand why too many other people FORGET how GOOD the 1970s and 1980s were here in the city of Menlo Park, California.


The Palo Alto CIty Leafblower BAN (2005) seems to be somewhat working. I enjoy frequently driving into Palo Alto to enjoy what is left of their ban. This past Friday in Palo Alto (12-14-12) I notced an alarming INCREASE in the amount of violators of that HARD FOUGHT Ban. I fear that because of the poor economy, Palo Alto us cutting back the enforcement of this most vital ban. Who knows how many other, Ban cities, are scaling back their enforcement as well ???

First off and most important we all need a STATEWIDE Ban in California (or USA Federal BAN) on these evil Industrial Gardening crews who know NO politeness or Kindness. Anything less than a CALIFORNIA STATEWIDE BAN can not be properly funded and lacks heavy TEETH.. It is FOLLY to expect any local municipality or county to have the RESOURCES to combat this major corporate ring that Echo Leafblwoer is

A leafblower ban was attempted in 1998 but the evil and HEARTLESS industrial gardening lobby would NOT hear of it. The 1998 Menlo Park CITY COUNCIL did PASS a leafblower BAN that NEVER went into effect (to my HORROR). The IGNORANT and Brainwashed people called for a "special election" which the "Know NOTHINGS "won DUE to their well funded HYSTERIA (spoon fedby ECHO leafblower). We in Menlo Park have been FROZEN OUT of ANY BAN since that one try in 1998.

Thank you very very much for letting me get this important HUMAN issue off my chest !