I think that the proposed ban on gas-powered leaf blowers would be a very welcome, and well-intentioned, solution to both the noise and pollution caused by these devices.
That said, I recently had a fairly lengthy conversation with a representative from a company that manufactures both gas- and electric-powered mowers, blowers and other gardening equipment. I asked him how many commercial-grade [electric] devices they manufactured, and his answer was, “none, but we are working on it.” I then inquired as to whether any of his competitors made them, and his answer was, “none, but I am sure that they, too, are working on them.”
So, here we are discussing a ban on the only tools currently available to the professional gardeners and landscapers.
Unless the citizens of Glendale are prepared to purchase their own tools to be used by the gardeners, or use them themselves, this would seem to be a “fire, aim, ready” solution to the problem.
Let’s wait until there is a viable alternative before banning anything. Sorry to see that the City Council did not do a bit more research before coming up with this idea.
Donald Cameron
Glendale
First published in the March 25 print issue of the Glendale News-Press.
