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Dear Members of the West Hartford Town Council,

I want to express my appreciation for your January 25th adoption of the “Resolution Declaring a Climate Crisis.” This is a necessary declaration that I hope will propel progressive choices and the development of climate-focused and heath-focused policies and legislation in our town. As Mayor Cantor and former Town Manager Hart are aware, I have been asking the town to ban gas-powered leaf-blowers for several years. I am asking for this specifically as a means to immediately improve public health and reduce climate-warming emissions.

The “Resolution Declaring a Climate Crisis” recognized that climate change is anthropogenic, caused by the burning of fossil fuels, and it resolved that we must act at all levels of government and consider in town decisions going forward ways to mitigate climate change, improve air quality, and reduce emissions. It also recognized issues of social injustice that are inextricably linked to air pollution and climate change. Gas-powered leaf-blowers are horrifically polluting, given the antiquated design of the two-stroke engine that mixes oil and gas, burning some of it and aerosolizing the rest. Operating one gas-powered leaf-blower for just 30 minutes releases emissions equivalent to driving a F-150 truck just under 4,000 miles. These unfiltered emissions, comprised of particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and hydrocarbons, can contribute to cardiovascular damage, exacerbation of respiratory conditions, and cancer, and are released directly around the operators of the machines, spewing emissions at a rate of 500-1000 times higher than OSHA standards in manufacturing jobs.

Countless cities around the United States, and the entire state of California, have chosen to ban gas-powered leaf blowers. Historically, regulation of these machines has been due to noise restrictions–and gas-powered leaf-blowers do operate on a frequency of about 80-90 decibels, which can cause permanent hearing damage–but in addition to this obvious health risk to the well-being of landscapers and residents, and the incessant intrusion into our homes and businesses from this noise, communities are finally eliminating the use of gas-powered leaf-blowers for environmental reasons.

The state of California previously predicted that by 2020, emissions from gas-powered landscaping equipment would surpass that of emissions from the transportation sector. Accordingly, Governor Newsom is not only phasing out gas-powered leaf-blowers throughout the state of California, but also the use of all small gas-powered engines. In addition to California, you can look to Burlington, VT; Chevy Chase, MD; Larchmont, NY; and Washington D.C., among a growing list of communities, to learn how they chose to implement such change. Understandably, there is a great deal of concern about the impact of a ban on gas-powered leaf-blowers on members of the community, particularly businesses. Looking to communities and businesses that have already accomplished this transition will be helpful in navigating such a change, for instance, regarding the use of Buy-Back programs, Swap Funds and financial incentives, plans for policy enforcement, and even educational endeavors to alter the expectations of overly-maintained properties that perpetuate the use of environmentally-destructive landscaping practices. There is no need to reinvent the wheel here; many communities have taken the steps to eliminate this contributor to anthropogenic climate change, and we can benefit from their efforts and experiences.

I commend the Town Council on the adoption of the “Resolution Declaring a Climate Crisis.” This is a fantastic first step in the right direction, and now, in line with this resolution, I ask you to act accordingly, taking “immediate action” by beginning a phase-out and ultimate ban of gas-powered leaf-blowers. This will quickly address so many of the elements of your resolution: it will “mitigate the effects of anthropogenic climate change” and “improve air quality through the implementation of…policies that reduce, eliminate or counteract the burning of fossil fuels and the emission of greenhouse gases.”

We must take every action possible to mitigate the worst effects of climate change. It will obviously take more time and investment to fully transition our electrical grid to renewable energy, and electrify our homes, businesses, and cars, but eliminating the use of gas-powered leaf-blowers is a step that can be immediately implemented to accomplish our collective goals of improving the health of our community and planet. For years, we have heard politicians “Talk the Talk” and we are witnessing increasingly-focused attention on the climate crisis at this time. Last August, following the most recent report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the United Nations declared a “Code Red for Humanity.” In December, Governor Lamont remarked that we are not making progress to address the threats of climate change quickly enough and took executive action to address emissions in the transportation and building sectors in CT. Last week, John Kerry, the Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, reported that the world is not on track to meet its emissions reductions goals from the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. Now, it is time not only to “Talk the Talk” and declare a climate crisis, but to “Walk the Walk” and do something about it. Please live up to our reputation as part of Sustainable CT and make West Hartford the first city in our state to eliminate the use of gas-powered leaf-blowers.

Thank you very much. Sincerely,

Elizabeth Davidson
West Hartford