A long goodbye is underway in Providence for gas-powered leaf blowers.
The controversial lawn equipment is considered an environmental risk because of the noise pollution and the toxic emissions created by the combustion engines, according to the proposed ordinance by the Special Committee for Environment and Resilience. The committee passed an amended version of the ordinance late last month, and the Council has since passed it for the first time, with a second vote scheduled for Thursday, October 16. Any city ordinance must pass the City Council twice to be instated.
“I want to express gratitude to all of the advocates who came out to our public hearing this spring. We had so much testimony,” said Chairperson Sue AnderBois, before explaining the proposed amendments to the original ordinance. AndersBois addressed the other committee members and a scant public audience as she explained the amendments inspired by the spring meeting. The amendments were included to address challenges ahead for small business owners in the city, namely landscaping crews, who depend on gas-powered equipment to operate.
The ordinance details the environmental consequences of the blowers, including acid rain and smog. The noxious chemicals also pose a public health concern because they have been linked to heart disease, asthma, cancers, and low birth rate.
Despite these serious consequences, landscapers have major concerns with the ban and the proposed solution.
“I’m not happy, and my customers won’t be happy either,” said Werner Gill of Werner Landscaping, which services the greater-Providence metropolitan area.
Several states and more than 200 cities and local municipalities have banned the lawn equipment, according to the Public Interest Research Group.
In addition to the toxic emissions, noise pollution by the equipment was another concern that led to the ordinance. The ordinance warns that the noise levels produced by gas-powered leaf blowers exceed the acceptable thresholds set by the World Health Organization. Exposure to sound levels of this caliber for extended periods of time can cause hearing loss and hypertension, which puts the machine operators, who are disproportionately of Hispanic and Latino heritage, at risk.
The main objective of the legislation is a complete shift to electric leaf-blowers for the entire city by January 1, 2033. Landscaping companies complain that electric equipment isn’t powerful enough to weather the New England fall.
This was one of the concerns that AnderBois and her colleagues addressed between the spring and fall sessions for the “Health and Sanitation” ordinance.
”I really don’t want to harm small businesses. I tried to address their largest concerns while staying committed to the phase out,” said AnderBois.
The summer attempt at mediation resulted in a two-year phase-out policy that permits the use of gas-powered leaf blowers for fall use only, starting in 2027. The transitional period allows businesses time to make the necessary adjustments to their protocol without sacrificing the efficiency of their traditional equipment during the busiest season, but time isn’t the only concern.
“Electric [equipment] is more expensive,” said Gill, citing another concern.
Another amendment to the original ordinance addressed financial considerations. It details outreach and education plans on procuring state funds for reimbursement. This entails a city and state partnership between the City of Providence, the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources and the Rhode Island Commerce Cooperation.
“Senator Zurier and Representative Boylan advocated for a program of $250k at the state level to support the transition for business owners to go from gas-powered leaf blowers to electric leaf blowers,” AnderBois said.
The chairperson said that a criticism of the program was that the amount of paperwork required to obtain the support was not worth the payoff. Since it was instated, there have been improvements to streamline the process and relax the rules, which has allowed municipalities and non-profits to apply for aid to make the program more broadly applicable.
”I hope to see more programs to help folks transition,” said AnderBois. “Part of the reason the full phase out isn’t until 2033 is to give folks that time to phase out their equipment. We’re trying to make sure it’s something that folks can do without being overly burdened.”
The ordinance provides consequences for non-compliance once the ban is in effect. A warning from the Department of Inspections and Standards will be issued for the first offense, with each subsequent offense resulting in a $100 fine per instance of violation.
“The fines are on the property owner and not the company,” warned AnderBois.
Once the amendments had been discussed in detail and all questions and comments had been addressed or solicited, AnderBois asked for a motion. Seconds later the motion came to approve the ordinance, and Anderbois gave a little cheer as she banged her gavel to commemorate the occasion. But that is not the end of the road for the gas-powered engines.
If the ordinance passes a second time this Thursday, it will go to Mayor Brett Smiley for his signature. If it fails, ordinance cosponsor and councilman John Goncalves indicated that “no one on the Council has indicated plans to reintroduce a new version soon,” in a newsletter to constituents.
This story was created in partnership with Journalism New England. The writers are all Providence Eye Community News Fellows and their bios are listed here.
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