Greenwich Mulls Leaf Blower Ban

A group of residents in Greenwich, Conn. are fed up with the sound of leaf blowers, so much so that they are urging the city?EUR??,,????'?????<

Webster’s dictionary defines “calm” as “a quiet and peaceful state or condition.”

Leaf blowers generally do not produce these conditions and a group of Greenwich, Conn. residents have turned calm into an acronym to show their displeasure over these landscaping tools.

Citizens Against Leafblower Mania (CALM) is urging Greenwich leaders to impose a ban on leaf blowers from April 15 – Oct. 15.

“I can’t even speak on the telephone in my house with the windows closed,” the group’s leader, Gretchen Biggs, told the Greenwich Time. “Our children can’t play outside without breathing the fumes, dust and pesticides.”

Biggs added, “No other towns in Connecticut have the mania that we do for leaf blowers. There is no need for leaf blowers. They detract from our peace and enjoyment.”

Greenwich’s Board of Selectmen have tackled leaf blower complaints in the past. The town amended its noise ordinance in the mid-1990s to include gasoline-powered leaf blowers, restricting their use between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. weekdays and between 3 p.m. and 9 a.m. on weekends and holidays. Only one gas-powered leaf blower can be used at a time on residential and commercial properties a quarter of an acre or less under the ordinance. Violators face a $100 fine per offense.

Biggs is less than impressed with these measures, calling the existing regulations a “joke.” During a recent public hearing on the matter, she told the board that leaf blowers contribute to hearing loss, asthma, allergies, high blood pressure, pollution, storm drain obstructions, soil problems and hazards to animals, plants and insects.

If Greenwich bans leaf blowers, the town would join cities including Rye, N.Y., Boulder, Colo. and Palo Alto, Calif. in halting use of this equipment within city limits.