Photo credit: Jamie Banks by Jamie Banks, MSc, PhD, President, Quiet Communities Inc. The pressure to limit the use of gas-powered leaf blowers is growing. Recently, Montgomery County, Maryland passed legislation to phase out the sale of use of gas-powered blowers. An updated report on national emissions from gas lawn and garden equipment was released
Photo credit: Pixabay by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition A recent article in the Journal of the American Heart Association reported that the number of people sickened or killed by air pollution is increasing worldwide. Researchers used the Global Burden of Disease study from 2019 to examine the proportion of cardiovascular diseases attributed to
Photo credit: Mx. Granger, licensed by Creative Commons CC 1.0 by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition The American Green Zone Alliance (AGZA) recently reported that the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Hospital became the first hospital in the country to achieve AGZA Green Zone certification. The Green Zone certification is granted by AGZA when
Photo credit: Garvin St. Villier by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition According to this editorial in the Santa Fe New Mexican, reducing noise is smart public policy. We couldn’t agree more. As the editorial notes, noise from mufflers and drag racing was the problem that brought noise to the public’s attention, and then
Photo credit: Erik Mclean by Jamie Banks, MSc, PhD, President, Quiet Communities Inc. A recent piece from NPR discusses some of the barriers landscaping professionals face when considering the purchase of battery electric lawn mowers. These mowers, powered by lithium-ion batteries, are quieter, cleaner, simpler, and easier to use and can make for an attractive
Photo credit: jan buchholtz licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition There’s an old saying that every cloud has a silver lining. I’m not sure that’s true, but many clouds--or in this case, no rain cloud in Las Vegas--may indeed have a silver lining. As this report in The New
Photo credit: Rob Howard licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 by Arnold Gordon, PhD Gas-powered leaf blowers cause many problems. They are noisy, pollute the air with carcinogens, aerosolized particulate matter and greenhouse gases, and disturb the natural leaf litter layer that protects the ground. As far back as 1993, environmental activists urged the Town of Greenwich
Photo credit: Dr. Daniel Fink by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition As those who follow this blog may remember, when I’m not writing about noise issues I’m working as a home handyman fixing things. Ah, the joys of home ownership. On this week’s journey to a big box DIY store, imagine my surprise
by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition, and Jamie L. Banks, PhD, MS, Executive Director, Quiet Communities, Inc., Co-Founder, The Quiet Coalition A new California law, AB 1346, phases out the sale of new small off-road gasoline engines. The law, based on concerns over harmful air pollution in the state, affects gas-powered lawn and
Photo credit: Andres Siimon licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 Governor Gavin Newsom of California signed a measure on Saturday requiring new small off-road engines to be zero-emission by 2024. The bill includes $30 million in financing to assist with the transition. According to the California Air Resources Board, using a gas leaf blower for an hour
