Fall is here, and that means plenty of leaves appearing on your lawn, paths, and driveway.
A leaf blower is usually considered an essential gardening tool for dealing with leaf litter. However, there are some environmental concerns to bear in mind before you turn on your leaf blowers.
This piece of gardening kit can emit greenhouse gasses, erode soil quality, and destroy local habitats. I spoke to an environmental expert about the five ways leaf blowers can harm the local environment, and what you can do to help.
1. Leaf blowers contribute to the greenhouse gas effect
Gas-powered leaf blowers are one of the worst sources of domestic greenhouse emissions. They're one of many tools regulated in California's small engine ban, and many other states and municipalities are considering similar restrictions.
It sounds over the top, and many think it doesn't make sense - surely the larger engines in cars are worse for greenhouse emissions?
However, it's because of the type of engine. Unlike cars, gas-powered leaf blowers use two-stroke engines. These are lightweight - perfect for a handheld tool - and work by combining gas and oil to keep the parts running smoothly. However, this mix of gas and oil produces toxic fumes, which you can see and smell when you use a gas-powered tool.
That's bad enough, but unlike modern cars, leaf blowers don't have catalytic converters. Catalytic converters react with the most dangerous byproducts of exhaust to stop them from entering the atmosphere. Ecological expert David Burrows told me that 'Gas-powered leaf blowers have little to no exhaust filtration requirements and thus can produce more carbon monoxide and higher levels of formaldehyde and benzene than an automobile or SUV.'
David adds that it isn't just the fumes. 'The microparticles and dust that leaf blowers push up into the atmosphere add to urban ozone levels and difficulty in breathing for those sensitive to air quality conditions.'
While the effect is small with a single leaf blower, a neighborhood of people running gas leaf blowers can be bad for the local environment. You can mitigate some of the effects by choosing a battery-powered leaf blower instead, like this EGO leaf blower at Walmart.
2. Leaf blowers can affect soil quality
If you love to grow plants and vegetables, you should also be aware of how leaf blowers can affect the quality of your soil. It's not true of all models, but top-line gas leaf blowers and wheeled walk-behind leaf blowers can ruin your ground.
David Burrows says that 'Industrial leaf blowers are powerful in that the wind force they create not only blows away leaves and debris, but also, valuable topsoil which leads to erosion and unnecessary run off of rain or from sprinklers.'
Runoff can be terrible for your garden. Not only does it turn a pristine lawn into a bog, but if you have a pond or stream in your yard, it will carry pesticides and fertilizers into the water, polluting them. If it doesn't drain, it's also a breeding ground for mosquitos and other pests.
You can avoid this issue by raking rather than using a leaf blower, or opting for a low-powered battery leaf blower which won't damage the topsoil.
3. Blowers can destory leaf habitats
As well as damaging the soil, leaf blowers destroy an invaluable habitat. Leaf litter is a crucial habitat for insects, which are vital food for other animals like birds.
David Burrows says 'Leaf blowers remove a significant amount of the upper-level environment where many species of pollinators and beneficial insects live. They also blow away insects and seeds which native species of birds and lizards depend on as a food source.'
This can cause havoc to your local ecosystem, throwing local populations out of balance or removing them entirely. David says it can even affect endangered species. 'Leaf blowers can also remove leaves that may have caterpillar or butterfly eggs. Some of those species are endangered - such as the Monarch Butterfly.'
To help reduce the harm to local wildlife, be sure to check leaf litter before you blow or rake, so that you can remove any animals hiding in it.
4. Leaf blowers cause noise pollution
Leaf blowers are notoriously noisy. They're one of the loudest gardening tools you can use, and this noise pollution can be very harmful to the local environment.
David told me 'Homeowners and landscapers are subjected to noise levels of 95 or more decibels while using a gas-powered leaf blower. That's 10 decibels over OSHA's requirement for hearing protection of 85 dBs and below.'
While this harm can be mitigated with ear protection like this from Amazon, it can be very harmful in the local area. That's because leaf blower noise is low-frequency, so it can travel hundreds of feet and pass through walls. If you've ever been irritated by a leaf blower humming several streets away and wondered how you can even hear it, it's because leaf blowers are particularly bad for this low-frequency noise.
Battery leaf blowers are quieter than gas mowers, but you're better off using a rake or a lawn sweeper like this from Amazon. These don't make any noise at all.
5. Leaves are not always reused
A final issue with leaf blowers is what happens to the leaves afterward. David says 'Many landscapers that use leaf blowers also bag up the remaining leaves that are hauled off to garbage dumps where they are buried and provide no future benefit to the environment.'
Decomposing leaves are a vital source of nutrients for plants and grass. Blowing them out of flowerbeds and lawns and into plastic bags traps all these benefits in plastic for decades while the bags decompose, harming the fertility of the soil and the growth and health of your plants.
Instead, try reusing leaves in compost, mulching them, or as leaf mold. You can also leave them in flowerbeds to decompose and provide nutrients to plants.
Leaf blower FAQs
What should I do instead of using a leaf blower?
It's not always practical on large lawns and drives, but raking and sweeping are much better for the environment than leaf blowing.
David says 'Raking leaves (although more timely and more of a workout), is what we recommend in our pollination gardens. This allows leaves and debris to be moved to a composting area of your property where the organic material can be used in spring for a richer, healthier yard and garden.'
Not only can leaf blowers harm the environment, they can be antisocial if they produce a lot of noise. It's always best to check HOA rules about when and for how long you can run your leaf blower to stay on the right side of leaf blower etiquette.
