Vancouver's not ready for a city-wide ban on gas-powered leaf blowers and lawn mowers: City staff

The use of quiet zero-emission landscaping equipment to reduce noise and emissions is a laudable idea, but the technology that currently exists for this transition away from gas-powered equipment still needs to be improved.

That was the conclusion City of Vancouver staff provided in an internal memo to Vancouver City Council this month, in response to an approved 2022 member motion directing City staff to report back on phasing out the use of gas-powered landscaping equipment for personal and commercial uses, such as lawn mowers and leaf blowers.

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To explore the possibility of such a ban on gas-powered equipment, City staff looked at the performance of the Vancouver Park Board’s recent adoption of electric equipment, including battery-electric equipment.

So far, the Park Board has converted 35% of its landscaping equipment to electric models, but “this work has highlighted challenges with electric equipment, particularly for commercial usage. Challenges have included limited battery-charge life, limitations with charging infrastructure, ergonomic issues, limits with power and torque levels, and delays in procuring equipment.”

For these reasons, according to City staff, “the market is not yet ready for a complete prohibition of gas-powered equipment,” and a “city-wide prohibition on all gas-powered landscaping equipment, or a specific prohibition on gas-powered leaf blowers, would encounter the same challenges, and likely would be unsuccessful.”

But City staff note that it is within the municipal government’s authority to regulate the use of gas-powered landscaping equipment, as it has the ability to regulate noise under the Vancouver Charter. Gas-powered equipment are generally far noisier than electric equipment.

City staff state they can work with Metro Vancouver Regional District on developing policies to regulate the use of such equipment at some point in the future.

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• 83 km of drainage pipe now installed at Vancouver's Langara Golf Course