Read the full editorial here.
The voices of those bothered by leaf blowers have been heard loud and clear — especially during the past couple years. Their complaint is understandable: The blowers are indeed noisy and at times they are improperly utilized. Even many landscapers understand this.
But the regulations as proposed by P&S go too far — and in some cases could exacerbate the situation through unintended consequences. Consider this: If the 65-decibels limit were to be enforced (it currently is not, even though it is on the books) it would take two blowers to do the work of one, requiring more manpower by landscapers and probably taking longer per job. In other words: more expensive landscaping bills and an extended duration of noise.
Let’s just keep debating this issue for another decade or two. Same thing with sidewalk snow clearing. Bla–bla–bla… and the beat goes on.
Hmmm. The editorial says “the needs of the many should out weigh the few” and goes from there to say the majority of homes use landscaping companies. I guess Andy lives in a different part of the city than I do.
In my neighborhood homes using leaf blowing landscapers would be in a distinct minority. By the same logic, us many shouldn’t be roused at 7 AM due to someone else (the few’s) leafblower.
How is raising the allowable decibel level to 77 from the current 65 dB a compromise? The 77 dB machine is about 6 times as loud as a 77 dB machine! This is insane!
Andrea M. Boyer, Chief Licensing Investigator for the City of Cambridge reports that the contractors and landscapers in Cambridge are complying with the leaf blowers rated 65 dB’s. The companies bought and supplied their workers with proper equipment. They manage to get the job done.
Parks and Recreation is requiring their contractors to only use machines the meet our noise ordinance. I have seen them in use in our parks and they are a marked improvement.
There are alternatives now to using the 77 decibel, gasoline powered, excruciatingly loud behemoths. Technology is steadily improving, including more advanced and quieter gasoline and battery operated units.
The landscaping community can and will adapt to the new requirements. They may have to adopt some different management practices as well as invest in new technology. (They have had 8 years to do this).
Won’t it be nice on a summer day to listen to the birds and the sound of children playing instead of the roar of the ubiquitous blower?
The current proposal is almost identical to what I put before the full Board of Aldermen 8 years ago, which came close to getting the requisite votes. The 65db limit has been around a long time, although it has been observed mostly in the breach. The only difference now is that there appears to be broader support for a seasonal ban on the City Council. That, and the fact that the technology has improved and leaf blowers are becoming more efficient without making as much noise (in no small part in response to state and local noise and air pollution regulations). It is time to strike a reasonable balance between lawn maintenance and the right of residents to quiet enjoyment of their homes when people are most likely to be outside.
It is the idea of a “ban” that is the most troubling aspect of this proposal. I’ll let others worry about the impact of any of this on landscapers and those whose disposable income are sufficient to allow for the employment of landscapers. It is an appalling overreach to think that a homeowner who wanted to employ one of these tools to ease his or her burden in maintaining their property should be outright banned from such activity for a substantial period of the year. There are many reasonable compromises that could be struck that balance a respect for the time and effort of these tax paying members of our community with the interests of their neighbors. It is disappointing, though not at all surprising, that the geniuses on the City Council who are pushing this issue lack the ability to grasp these subtleties and legislate accordingly. How very Triumpian.
City Councilors ought to consider the impact of the leaf blower noise on many Newton residents who work from home, and others with serious medical conditions. Think of night shift workers (nurses, firefighters, police), as well as nap time for children. Leaf blowers disturb residents from early morning until late in the afternoon day in a day out. They also stir up unhealthy particulate matter, often with animal waste and other harmful debris.
If a ban on leaf blowers is passed for the open windows months, life inside Newton’s homes will be much improved, and outdoor activities would be all the more enjoyable.
I just returned from talking to the landscapers working on my neighbors yard. 15 minutes of FOUR high powered blowers just in the backyard. This is a small yard. If they raked first then followed up with one of them blowing it would have gotten done quicker. BONUS – My hair and all my clothes smell like gasoline just by walking out in my backyard to ask the landscapers how much longer I had to put up with their noise. WHY is that OK?
The ordinance does get to the heart of the matter. Leaf cleanup happens in the fall and in the spring. During those times of the year (9 months of the year), businesses and homeowners can use them freely. Autumn isn’t between Memorial Day and Labor Day — but in these months leaf blowers are widely misused by landscaping companies to blow stuff like grass clippings, dust, dirt, gravel and miscellaneous debris, all while making excessive noise. They’re also putting particles and pollutants into the air that are a health hazard. It’s a simple solution that improves the lives of the vast majority of Newton residents. So let’s finally enact this ordinance and move on.
This compromise fits just right. I’m with Jerry. I know many more homeowners who do their own yards than use landscapers.
This compromise sounds just about right. Forge ahead.
Does not matter. Salutary neglect. We have noise ordinances. We have snow shoveling ordinances. Like the other ordinances, leaf blower ordinances will not matter one iota. The council can keep passing regulations day and night, but regulations do not matter unless they are enforced.
Newton is a city of residents where “a majority employs a landscaping company.”? Really. And here I – and the vast majority of my neighbors – have been doing it ourselves all these years.
BTW, dBs are measured on a logarithmic scale. 68dB is twice as loud as 65dB, One 77dB leaf blower is as loud as sixteen 65dB leaf blowers. So, four 77dB leaf blowers together are as loud as SIXTY-FOUR 65dB blowers! Is this really what you want for yourself and your family? Is this what you want for your children to suffer, along with the filthy road dust, fertilizers, pesticides, dried dung, etc., that they blast into the air for us to breathe?
I am writing from the point of view as a runner, someone who spends a lot of time outdoors. I have trained for and run 11 Boston Marathons, so in that time I have had ample opportunity for observation.
Leaf blowers are not always used for leaves. They are used on dirt, debris and whatever happens to be on peoples’ driveways and sidewalks. This debris isn’t even cleaned up, it is merely rearranged. I can’t tell you how many times I see leaf blowing personnel blowing dirt and debris from one person’s driveway and sidewalk onto the neighbor’s property, or onto the street. I used to laugh about this but it’s not funny: Many times running West on Comm Ave, I’ll observe a landscaping company using leaf blowers to blow stuff onto the neighbor’s adjacent property in order to leave their customer’s property pristine (since when is dirt not allowed on the outside?) And – on my way back, running East, I will then see that neighbor, with a different landscaper, blowing the dirt and debris either back on to the original property where it came from, out into the street, or onto the property on the other side.
I think in the fall, if leaf blowers are used to blow leaves into yard waste bags for pick up, that is reasonable, but they don’t seem necessary for dirt and other debris on the sidewalks and driveways.
Leaf blowers are really loud and I believe many are probably over the decibel level allowed. However, I know realistically that this is not going to be a high priority for our police officers, and therefore it is an un- enforced law. At least if there is a seasonal ban, we can have a period of time without that constant noise.
Last, it is disingenuous for landscapers to claim the prices are going to rise if they have to rake once in a while. When my old landscaper started using leaf blowers, my bill did not go down. I didn’t like the noise, so I have since switched to a gardener who rakes only. The cost is actually less.
Thank you for reading this