April 12, 2021
According to California’s Air Resources Board, operating a gas-fueled commercial lawn mower for just one hour emits as much pollution as driving a Toyota Camry about 300 miles. And if you substitute a commercial leaf blower for the mower, one hour of operation emits pollution comparable to driving a Camry about 1,100 miles.
Indeed, Jamie Banks, the president of Quiet Communities, a nonprofit based in Lincoln, Massachusetts, said it’s not a one-machine issue. “It’s really the very widespread use of all polluting, noisy fossil-fuel-powered equipment that is at issue,” she noted.”
The noise from gas-powered lawn equipment is what stands out for people. But just how loud are those machines? While sound levels typically are measured in decibels, experts also rely on what are known as weighted decibels (dBAs), which take into account not just the intensity of the sound, but also how the ear responds.
Any “sound above 45 dBA is likely to start having negative effects,” John Medina, an affiliate associate professor at the University of Washington Department of Boengineering, told the Times. Leaf blowers, he said in an email, “are potentially quite dangerous,” because, when close to the ear, they “have been measured at 95 dBA.” A person standing 50 feet away is exposed to levels of anywhere from 65 dBAs to 80 dBAs, he added.
So what’s a homeowner to do?
For noise reduction alone, “robotic mowers are the biggest bang for the buck,” said Dan Mabe, the founder and president of the American Green Zone Alliance (AGZA), a California-based consulting firm that is creating its own standards and certification for areas that move to emission-free lawn care. Like LEED certification for buildings, the AGZA designation will mean that the community or commercial area has achieved emission-free status in its green spaces.
Robotic mowers are more prevalent in Europe, where yards tend to be smaller. In the United States, a few companies have begun to offer robotic services, Frank Rossi, an associate professor at the Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, told the Times.
“Labor challenges” in the landscaping market are helping to bring about changes, said Kris Kiser, president and chief executive of the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute.
For example, a labor shortage first propelled the Langton Group, a landscaping company in Woodstock, Illinois, to make the transition to emissions-free and quieter equipment about five years ago.
“I just couldn’t find enough people to hire, and I saw robotics as a way to solve my labor problems,” said Joe Langton, president of the company. “I began to realize that we not only saved labor, but helped the environment.”
Last year, working with Dan Mabe of AGZA, Langton designated a 29-acre green zone in Woodstock, which Mabe said was the first in the state. The zone comprises a large corporate campus as well as an 11-acre group of townhouses.
Each robot covers 1.25 acres, constrained by an underground, signal-emitting wire similar to one used in an invisible dog fence. The family-run company largely relies on equipment manufactured by Husqvarna. a Swedish company in the forefront of green lawn technology.
And Langton told the Times that using robots had not eliminated jobs but instead had changed the kinds of workers he hired. Now he needs people who can oversee the technology and also trim hedges and work on weeds — all with battery-power equipment.
Robotic mowers are expensive, which can deter homeowners. Costs can range from about $1,000 to $2,500, depending on the model. But over the life of the equipment, battery-power models ultimately save money, a 2017 analysis at the University of Arkansas found. Some communities are offering rebates when older mowers or blowers are traded in, Mabe said.
Among manufacturers that offer equipment, Husqvarna is well known, and there are newer companies, like EGO and Ambrogio, as well as Mean Green Products, which in September was acquired by a division of Generac Holdings. Market stalwarts like Toro and DeWalt now also offer battery operated lawn care equipment.
Those who care for their own yards are moving toward battery-operated blowers, trimmers, and edgers when purchasing new equipment, Farnsworth said, adding that roughly half of newly purchased blowers and trimmers are battery powered.
The biggest hurdle may be the professional market, because the electric equipment needs recharging to handle, say, ten hours of continuous use, the Times notes. Until there is a solution, he said, landscapers may “be laggards when compared to homeowners.”
Research contact: @nytimes
