Leaf Blowers in today's Sonoma West weekly

[Shepherd]

The following commentary on leaf blowers appeared in today's Sonoma West Times and News. Sebastopol is currently preparing a ban to be proposed in January. If you want to weigh in on this issue, you can send a letter of up to 300 words to [email protected].
Shepherd

SONOMA WEST TIMES & NEWS > OPINION

Leaf blowers pollute

by Shepherd Bliss

Published: Wednesday, December 9, 2009 3:37 PM PST

Even as a child, when people smoked cigarettes nearby, I would walk away. The smoke felt harmful. The problem with loud leaf blower noise that invades homes is that one cannot always walk away easily. Sleep, work, conversations, caring for children or the sick, meals, listening to music, and other normal home activities are interrupted and cannot continue. Our homes should be free of such uninvited intrusions.

Second-hand smoke can harm. You do not need to smoke to be hurt; you merely need to be near someone smoking. Leaf blower noise also damages. Smoking and leaf blowing are public health hazards.

No one has the right to blow smoke in my face. Nor do they have the right to blow loud noise into my ears. People need to be accountable for the harm they do; that’s what justice is about.

Some minimize suffering caused by leaf blower noise and fumes, as people did for years with respect to second-hand smoke. Noise pollution is a pernicious contaminant and deserves more attention. The discussion of leaf blowers stimulated by the proposed ban currently before the Sebastopol City Council may be a teaching moment to learn about noise pollution.

Other loud garden tools are not as damaging as the high-pitched whine of blowers. Leaf blowers also have an effective, quiet alternative — brooms and rakes.

Carmel banned leaf blowers in l975, Beverly Hills in 1976, Sacramento in 1991, Los Angeles in l997 and many other peace-loving cities in California and elsewhere in the U.S. over the past 35 years.

It’s time for Sebastopol to improve the quality of life of its residents by outlawing leaf blowing. Groups working to ban leaf blowers have been organized around the U.S., and one is emerging in Sebastopol.

Millions living in small to large communities are protected from leaf blowers, but not the some 8,000 human souls in our sweet, sometimes peaceful, small town. We lag behind, rather than take the lead.

The health hazards of loud noises are documented at Noise Pollution Clearinghouse, quieting noise pollution (https://www.nonoise.org). Among them are hearing loss, greater risk of heart attacks, damage to the endocrine system and stomach, depressed immunity, increased adrenaline, change in heart rate, elevated blood pressure and cholesterol levels, social discord, impaired communication, heightened social conflicts, and increased psychological, social and emotional problems.

The World Health Organization and the United Nations recommend the following noise levels: 45 decibels for good speech intelligibility, 35 decibels to avoid sleep disturbance, and less than 55 decibels to prevent significant annoyance. Leaf blowers violate these recommendations.

Noise reduces the accuracy of work, especially on complex tasks. Noise “seems to hinder work efficiency,” according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Studies have confirmed additional effects of noise exposure to include exhaustion, absentmindedness, mental stress, and absenteeism.

Some argue that leaf blowers are faster than rakes and brooms. “Grandmother Proves Rake and Broom as Fast as Leaf Blowers” headlines a 1998 article about Diane Wolfberg of Los Angeles. In three tests conducted by LA’s Department of Water and Power she cleaned areas using rakes or brooms faster than any of the battery-powered blowers and almost as fast as the gas-powered blowers.

My farm accepts leaves seeking a final resting place. They become mulch, break down into compost, return to the Earth to create soil, and nourish my tasty berries and apples. It is a natural process, which leaf blowers interrupt. I would ask for mercy before operating a leaf blower to the possible detriment of a neighbor. The substantial costs outweigh the minimal benefits.

People come to Sebastopol seeking a more peaceful and sustainable life. May our lovely small town take its place as one that puts the health and well-being of its citizens foremost.

Shepherd Bliss is a Sebastopol resident and adjunct professor at SSU. He can be reached at [email protected].

Copyright © 2009 - Sonoma West

[Barry]

The following commentary on leaf blowers appeared in today's Sonoma West Times and News. Sebastopol is currently preparing a ban to be proposed in January. If you want to weigh in on this issue, you can send a letter of up to 300 words to [email protected].
Shepherd

SONOMA WEST TIMES & NEWS > OPINION

Leaf blowers pollute

by Shepherd Bliss....

Everybody is of course welcome to comment here as well!. As the new owner of an electric leaf blower :duck:I plan to post my comments soon!

[Sylph]

I Loooove my small gas leaf blower.:heart: I am out in the country with driveways and paths that are constantly littered with redwood leaves. Could I rake them? Yes, if that is all I had to do in my life. I also regularly get up on the roof to blow the leaves and blow out the gutters. I don't think that job would be very easy with a broom or brush!
My neighbors have never complained, but they aren't that close. If I had more people around to bother, I would consider restricting my noisy activities to a certain time of day, or day of the week.
Maybe that could be a workable solution for Sebastopol. There could be a day or two of noisy, gas powered activity and there could be reasonable time restrictions, (which wouldn't help the shift workers, sorry!).
I wonder how the cities that ban the gas powered tools are getting along? It must be a pain for the gardeners!

By the way, I compost the resulting piles of leaves. Composting and leaf blowing are not mutually exclusive!

[Zeno Swijtink]

Everybody is of course welcome to comment here as well!. As the new owner of an electric leaf blower :duck:I plan to post my comments soon!

Yes, at the moment the City of Seb is only considering regulating gasoline-powered leaf blowers.

[Shepherd]

From: Diane, Chair Education Committee, Zero Air Pollution, at [email protected], or [email protected]
To: Shepherd Bliss, [email protected], Dec. 10, 2009

You've obviously done a lot of research about leaf blower pollution and damage. I'm assuming you won't be offended by my writing to you to offer help or advice.

Although you may have seen it already, you didn't mention our website, Zero Air Pollution, Los Angeles (https://www.zapla.org), which has additional information, a video, and presentation materials, if this issue is up before your city council. The arguments ban opponents will use are the same ones they used here in L.A. over ten years ago. I have responses to many of the comments made in the November 18 article by your council members. For instance, Councilmember Shaffer is concerned small businesses will suffer. There have been no reports in over ten years of anyone being fired in L.A. for not using a gas blower, or having to go on welfare or close their business because of our ban. Instead, we have residents asking us for recommendations to law-abiding gardeners who comply with our law. (a business boost).

Where our law is enforced, we have greater or complete compliance. Enforcement is made possible mostly through anonymous (if you don't want to give your name) phoned-in reports of violations, which are recorded and acted upon in ways that don't interfere with other police business, and which I can explain to anyone who wants more details. Local police just need to know that this is an important law in that neighborhood. They see that in local community meetings when the subject is brought up, and by the amount of reports coming in from their locality.

Zero Air Pollution is the grassroots group that helped secure a ban on gas blowers in Los Angeles ten years ago. Your article spoke about our involvement with the Department of Water and Power comparison...I didn't think my name was mentioned in that article on NoNoise! You need to be aware that ConsumerReports.org now has a video showing a comparison that shows double the time for a rake. Our response is that it shows large leaves in a woodland, 7 inches deep, not representative of most residential neighborhoods; and the raking method was the same as the blower method, which is not a true comparison. With a rake, you would never rake the same beginning leaves over and over to pile the whole heavy amount up in one space. You would do it in easily manageable sections, either doing pick-up as you go along, or going back to 3 or 4 piles when you are done raking. Another point: leaf blowers in residential neighborhoods are used mostly on dirt and debris (hence the term "dirt blowers").

In 2000, efforts in Sacramento to stop all local legislation regarding blowers were stopped by the ARB Leaf Blower Report, Subject Top Page: Leaf Blower Report (https://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/leafblow/leafblow.htm) At that time, we put up our public service website, Zero Air Pollution, Los Angeles (https://www.zapla.org) in order to educate the public, the press, and politicians about the history of our ban, and to encourage compliance with this law. We present health and economic facts about all leaf blower use. The site also has our responses to erroneous claims made by ban opponents. Those erroneous claims by opponents are still being used today, as are the same ploys to stop or hinder a blower ban. That, report, by the way, was NOT instructed to make a recommendation regarding bans or legislation, but only to report on health hazards of noise and air pollution created by blowers. Your city council (or whomever is making a decision about a ban), needs to know this before opponents use the "bans are not recommended" ploy.

Our ban was passed, not because of the noise pollution, though it started out and had to remain as a noise ordinance. It passed because of the scientific information presented regarding air pollution and particulate matter. Though we had to compromise and allow electric blowers, they, too, sent that pollution up, where it can drift for up to 3 days.

It is easier to enforce a total ban, for, if a blower is seen or heard, it is a violation. No dispute as to what kind. Decibel levels are difficult to enforce and not reasonable. When decible levels, such as 65 dba are promised by blower manufacturers, that is at the ANSI testing procedures: (from Zero Air Pollution, Los Angeles : Health (https://www.zapla.org/health/h3.html#section7) ) = "...tests take place in an open field, with ground cover lower than 3 inches, and where large reflecting surfaces (such as property-line fences and walls, houses and cars) must be at least 100 feet from the blower. The sound meter microphone is 50 feet from the operator of the machine and four feet above ground. Eight readings are taken in a circle every 45 degrees as either the operator rotates, or the microphone is moved. The eight readings are then averaged to the nearest decibel. They are set to “A” for weighting, which evaluates high or low frequencies.

Average, remember, is neither the lowest, nor the highest reading. One very low reading can bring down other fairly high readings. When a blower is five feet from an open window of one’s home, blowing between and echoing off the neighbor’s stucco house exterior and a cement wall, the noise entering one’s home is not averaged, it is direct and may be much higher than 65dB."

You might be interested in knowing that another city in N.California is gearing up for just such an effort. See their fledgling web site, which is not completed. Home (https://www.quietorinda.com) They are making a video of their own that may be useful to Sonoma, too. They are getting thoroughly prepared, knowing that THEY will have to educate their city council members, and respond to claims made by ban opponents.

Good luck. It has been a long day. If I can be of help, do contact me. YOUR getting legislation that helps strengthens OUR position, in case there is a "revisiting" of our ban. Blower manufacturers have won that fight in at least one town, in part, by misrepresenting the ARB report....knowing the city council members there were not going to read it for themselves.

I am not taking the time to proofread this. My apologies if it rambles.
Sincerely, Diane, Chair Education Committee, Zero Air Pollution. USUALLY at [email protected] .

[broadbandersnatch]

Noise is not even usually considered to be "real" pollution by most people and by law makers. While there are noise ordinances, they're usually relegated to the most extreme situations such as commercial construction noise. Yet in our increasingly technological world noise pollution is a reality.

I never got the whole leaf blower thing. It seems to me a "technological marvel" with a big trade-off. I happen to live in Forestville, an unincorporated area, so we have no noise ordinances speak of. Basically anything goes here. But it cracks me up when I see my neighbors using leaf blowers. I ask myself if these folks have an issue with leaves, then why the hell did they move under the trees?!!?

I have neighbors that run these things nonstop for 45 minutes or more, even though their lots are relatively small. I figured they must have a reason for this so one day out of curiosity I went across the canyon and took a look at one of the worst offenders. I was surprised to see a fat kid blowing dirt and gravel off of his driveway. When I recovered from my initial surprise, I asked the young man what he was up to. He informed me that he and his brother had two electric scooters and found that it was less likely they would fall over when careening into the driveway if they used leaf blower to clear the driveway of gravel. I looked at this obese child and it was all I could do not to say, "Dude, there's this amazing device. It uses no gas or electricity is a great way to exercise and does the same job in just a little more time. It's called a rake. You should try it." The other thing that cracks me up is observing my neighbors blowing leaves and debris into their neighbors yards where in turn these neighbors blow them right back!

I myself still use the venerable rake and find it to be most effective, quiet and relatively efficient at gathering up leaves. Moreover, as the finished result is a neat pile, I am able to bag the leaves and carry them down to the canyon below my house where they will eventually become mulch for Oaks,Bays and other local flora. I realize not everyone has the convenience of having a canyon to dump one's yard waste, but the point here is in a town or suburban neighborhood, leaves and other yard debris don't just magically go away; they just go somewhere else.


Everybody is of course welcome to comment here as well!. As the new owner of an electric leaf blower :duck:I plan to post my comments soon!

[photolite]

Leaf blowers are obnoxious and I wouldn't be heartbroken if they were to be banned. But so are Harleys, boomboxes, deisel pick=ups and vans, ATVs, jet skis, vacum cleaners and an endless list of modern devises. To equate them (leafblowers) with second hand smoke however is ludicrous.

[sd gross]

:sweep:
A wise person I know once told me, "Wherever I go, there I am". So my question is, where do all the trillions of leaves which are moved around by leaf blowers go? Do they ascend to leaf heaven in a sort of arboreal Rapture? Do they line up like lemmings and march over to the nearest pile of mulch and dive in? Or do they, possibly, become some other lucky person's detritus?
Aside from the brain-rattling intrusiveness, the hiss, pop, sputter and roar, the fumes and the amazingly indiscriminate clouds of dust, just where do these twice-rejected leaves go?
I think if people really feel compelled to blow leaves, they should lie down with their faces near the ground, puff up their cheeks, and blow. Except for a little exhalation, they won't have to burn up, drain, or plug into anything.
In my opinion, unless you're producing a lovely sound or trying to get your campfire going, blowing really sucks.

[broadbandersnatch]

Well said!



:sweep:
A wise person I know once told me, "Wherever I go, there I am". So my question is, where do all the trillions of leaves which are moved around by leaf blowers go? Do they ascend to leaf heaven in a sort of arboreal Rapture? Do they line up like lemmings and march over to the nearest pile of mulch and dive in? Or do they, possibly, become some other lucky person's detritus?
Aside from the brain-rattling intrusiveness, the hiss, pop, sputter and roar, the fumes and the amazingly indiscriminate clouds of dust, just where do these twice-rejected leaves go?
I think if people really feel compelled to blow leaves, they should lie down with their faces near the ground, puff up their cheeks, and blow. Except for a little exhalation, they won't have to burn up, drain, or plug into anything.
In my opinion, unless you're producing a lovely sound or trying to get your campfire going, blowing really sucks.

[CadFactor]

I've never understood the need for people to try to contol others, just for their own sense of ideal.

Leaf blowers run for what, 15 minutes max at a normal sized yard? Larger yards are outside of the city limits and presumably wouldn't be under any control by this new ordinance. I've always been able to survive the neighbor's leaf blowing.

What's next, Chain saws? Nail guns?

Now Harley's, that's something I can get behind. :):

[broadbandersnatch]

My neighbors have a "normal sized yard", yet they run their leaf blowers sometimes for as long as 45 minutes. There've been recent studies that show that people who live near airports who are regularly exposed to 65 dB of sound have a much greater incidence of heart disease and cancers due to the stress of the noise. so for that person who thought it was ridiculous to compare secondhand smoke to stress caused by noise should think twice about it. Of course people living near airports are exposed to noise repeatedly during the day. All I'm saying is noise is more than an inconvenience to some. It can actually cause them harm. If my neighbors only ran their leaf blowers for 15 minutes at the time that would be one thing but that is not the case here.

[Zeno Swijtink]

Removing the leaves from my driveway this afternoon I wondered about possible unintended consequences of a ban.

If the ban is all-out could it be that some people decide not to plant trees, not to replant a tree, to cut down trees?

Other unintended consequences you can come up with?

A measure cannot just ride on the back of good intentions.

[broadbandersnatch]

I think the most likely unintended consequence will be that people might get some exercise.

Removing the leaves from my driveway this afternoon I wondered about possible unintended consequences of a ban.

If the ban is all-out could it be that people decide not to plant trees, not to replant a tree, to cut down trees?

Other unintended consequences you can come up with?

A measure cannot just ride on the back of good intentions.

[The Owl]

I think the most likely unintended consequence will be that people might get some exercise.

Right... can you say "RAKE?" They work very well and build up your upper body too... try one today!

[CadFactor]

Unintended consequences...

1. Gardeners who use them will either raise thier rates or not pick up the leaves.

2. Elderly folks who currently have a gardener won't be able to afford them anymore. They will have to cancel the gardners and their yards will be unkempt.

3. The gardeners will have less income to spend in our town. Shops will feel the pain and some might close.

4. Homeowners who use the blowers will buy an electric blower - they make nearly as much noise.

5. Homeowners who use the blowers will forego picking up the leaves and let mother nature deal with them. Neighbors will get mad at them for making their neighborhood look untidy.

6. The people who are complaining the loudest about the blowers will find something else to bitch about that will hurt another group of people.

I find it easier to live and let live. If something bothers you, find a solution yourself, don't go crying to city hall.

(Sure wish I had free wifi in town)

[MichaelK]

I was wondering who was disturbing the tranquility of the afternoon. Whatever happened to realizing the Zen by utilizing a rake, or the perfect harmony of accepting leaves as they fall.


I think the most likely unintended consequence will be that people might get some exercise.

[broadbandersnatch]

response below:

Unintended consequences...

1. Gardeners who use them will either raise thier rates or not pick up the
leaves.

So we have to pay them a little more. Those who have the money for a gardner in the first place can probably afford it. Also, they banned them in Berkeley and LA and there are gardners everywhere you look. Many use electric blowers.

2. Elderly folks who currently have a gardener won't be able to afford them anymore. They will have to cancel the gardners and their yards will be unkempt.

Maybe they can ask family members to help. Maybe neighbors could create a saturday am event and together rake their leaves up thus creating more community.

3. The gardeners will have less income to spend in our town. Shops will feel the pain and some might close.

This is preposterous!

4. Homeowners who use the blowers will buy an electric blower - they make nearly as much noise.

Its a step in the right direction as they make less noise. True, they still suck.

5. Homeowners who use the blowers will forego picking up the leaves and let mother nature deal with them. Neighbors will get mad at them for making their neighborhood look untidy.

Mother nature eventually does deal with them as they break down into mulch.

6. The people who are complaining the loudest about the blowers will find something else to bitch about that will hurt another group of people.

Noise pollution is not on most people's radar yet it has been shown to be a stress factor that can lead to diseases. A recent Berlin study correlated levels @65db near an airport with cancers and heart disease. All I'm saying is, noise causes stress in some people. It is not just curmudeon's pet complaint.

I find it easier to live and let live. If something bothers you, find a solution yourself, don't go crying to city hall.

Unfortunately we do need laws to uphold a civil society. As nice as it sounds, talking with neighbors about their leaf blower noise is not going to cut it. If it did, there wouldn't be so many folks pushing for a ban.


(Sure wish I had free wifi in town)

[Barry]

Let me recap:

First off, this is only being considered by the city of Sebastopol and any ban would only apply within the city limits.

It seems that the primary issue is that leaf blowers are loud and they are used for a long time.

Gas blowers are louder than electric ones, but not by much. Though clearly electric ones are easier on the environment.

The fundamental question here is: Do people, acting through their elected government, get to outlaw certain behaviors because some people find it unpleasant?

Sure, there is a case to be made that it is a health issue if you are living next to an airport, but that's not an issue in Sebastopol.

As much as I can be annoyed by leaf blowers, I finally broke down an got an electric one! Maybe because it's my new toy, but I love it. I have cleaned things substantially faster and better than I would with a rake or a broom. I use it primarily for dirt and other schmutz rather than leaves.

I don't think its any louder than my electric lawn mower, nor do I use it any longer. I haven't gotten any complaints from my neighbors yet.

I suppose it can be seen as more elective than lawn mowing, so its less tolerable for some people.

On the other hand, I used to live across the street from Analy High School. The maintenance workers used gas blowers for ever! It bugged the shit out of me! But that was just part of disadvantages and advantages to living near the school.

They had a big problem. They had lots of surfaces to maintain, and not only should it look good, but they could be exposing themselves to a costly lawsuit should anybody get hurt and they were found negligent. And any additional money spent on the grounds would come out of the educational budget.

For me, it would be an easy call to make to ban gas blowers while allowing electric ones. It would placate the citizens asking for the ban, by outlawing the most offensive instances while being good environmental stewards, and allowing many homeowners to continue to use their electric ones.

However the schools and the city (and any other large parcels) are what concern me. Switching to electric may not be that feasible for them, and to do otherwise would strain their budgets further.

BTW, the Sebastopol Leaf blower ban was the subject of CBS 5 Video Report. You can see it here:
Video Library - cbs5.com (https://cbs5.com/video/[email protected])

[typewriter]

This conversation is perplexing to me...I'm slightly embarrassed to engage.

There are many very intelligent and valuable comments made here...alongside some people who seem all too self-involved.

There are many reasons people are unable to rake or sweep. Leaves are a real & immediate safety hazard --in the summer for fires, and in the winter they are slippery & can lead to falls.

I personally don't really care about this ban, I don't own a leaf-blower and don't plan to. But I do care that people here are taking this opportunity to say some very ignorant, ableist, self-indulgent things. My opinion is along the lines of many others --that there are better solutions with outcomes that benefit more people than simply banning or not banning gas-powered blowers.

Thanks to those who supplied thoughtful responses (and take the time to understand what the ban would actually consist of before seizing on the opportunity to spout off).

And those who are volunteering the solution of sticking ones head in the dirt to blow the leaves away or that raking and sweeping is the simplest task ever or to hire a gardener --with no consideration for people who don't have the same resources/abilities, as we say where I'm from, "HELLO!"
Glad to hear you're invincible, but for the rest of us, maybe you could spare some critical thought & compassion. Or just some critical thought would do...and come on over any time to rake up (or huff&puff away) my leaves.

[broadbandersnatch]

I understand that not everybody is equally abled. I myself have a disability although it does yet inhibit my ability to rake. I think that your post is timely in that I've been thinking a great deal about community building and how it really starts with one's relationship to one's neighbors. perhaps volunteerism and neighborliness is the answer for those who are unable to rake their own leaves or can't afford to hire a gardener. In these tough times we have to pull together. The time of wearing blinders and not taking responsibility as part of the community is over, at least that's the way I see it. Good luck



This conversation is perplexing to me...I'm slightly embarrassed to engage.

There are many very intelligent and valuable comments made here...alongside some people who seem all too self-involved.

There are many reasons people are unable to rake or sweep. Leaves are a real & immediate safety hazard --in the summer for fires, and in the winter they are slippery & can lead to falls.

I personally don't really care about this ban, I don't own a leaf-blower and don't plan to. But I do care that people here are taking this opportunity to say some very ignorant, ableist, self-indulgent things. My opinion is along the lines of many others --that there are better solutions with outcomes that benefit more people than simply banning or not banning gas-powered blowers.

Thanks to those who supplied thoughtful responses (and take the time to understand what the ban would actually consist of before seizing on the opportunity to spout off).

And those who are volunteering the solution of sticking ones head in the dirt to blow the leaves away or that raking and sweeping is the simplest task ever or to hire a gardener --with no consideration for people who don't have the same resources/abilities, as we say where I'm from, "HELLO!"
Glad to hear you're invincible, but for the rest of us, maybe you could spare some critical thought & compassion. Or just some critical thought would do...and come on over any time to rake up (or huff&puff away) my leaves.