Seattle just got one step closer to banning gas-powered leaf blowers
Aug 19, 2022, 1:45 PM
(Jeff Vincent via Flickr)
(Jeff Vincent via Flickr)
The Seattle City Council voted out of committee Friday a resolution that sunsets City and privately owned gas-powered leaf blowers within city limits.
The resolution declares the city’s intent to stop using the devices by 2025 and gradually phase out the equipment among the public by 2027.
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The Department of Finance and Administrative Services and Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections would enforce the ban if the full council passes it.
The City of Seattle currently owns 418 gas-powered leaf blowers, with the Department of Parks and Recreation possessing the greatest number. Parks reports that alternatives, such as electric leaf blowers, are not powerful enough to function to standard during the wet fall months. The department has set a goal of electrifying half its leaf blowers by 2026.
Across the U.S., over 170 jurisdictions in 31 states have some type of restriction on the use of gas-powered leaf blowers. Washington D.C., for example, has banned their use outright. California will implement a similar restriction in 2024.
