D.C. Council considers gas-powered leaf blower ban

WASHINGTON (ABC7) — While lawn care crews worked across the District in the blistering heat on Monday, D.C. residents packed a hearing room at the Wilson Building to voice support or opposition to a couple of D.C. Council bills regulating noise.

One bill, introduced by Ward 3 Council member Mary Cheh, would prohibit the sale and use of gasoline-powered leaf blowers in the District beginning in 2022.

The ban would effectively force residents and businesses to transition to battery-powered leaf blowers.

District resident Chuck Elkins said, “[They] are so much quieter. They're better for the operator. They're better for the neighbors.”

But companies that do yard maintenance and landscaping said electric leaf blowers have less power and therefore take longer to do the same job.

“It's not really solving your problem,” said Jerell Brown.

Brown owns Save My Lawn Services in Northeast Washington. He said banning gas-powered leaf blowers will only make lawn care in D.C. more expensive.

“It's adding to our costs. It's gonna take us longer. So the guys are out there longer working,” he said.

Critics also question how this ban would be enforced.

“I think it's much better to ask for the operators to use modern equipment and use it responsibly and have courtesy toward your neighbors than it is to just ban things outright,” said Bob Mann, director of government relations for the National Association of Landscape Professionals.

Mann argued the legislation is too broad.

But at the hearing, other business owners disagreed. They told council members that battery technology has advanced and battery-powered blowers save their employees from harmful noise and emissions.

“I would not be here today if it were not viable to run a successful landscaping business using battery-powered equipment,” business owner Zack Kline said.

If the bill becomes law, violators would face a fine of up to $500.