Some local governments in Virginia were hoping to adopt new rules on noisy leaf blowers. But, that effort has run out of gas this year.
Gas-powered leaf blowers are loud. They also pollute, and many local governments in Virginia were hoping to create new rules cracking down on them. Delegate Rip Sullivan is a Democrat from Fairfax County who introduced a bill allowing local governments to take action.
"Putting my environmentalist hat on, they’re not good for the environment. They’re particularly not good for the people using them in close proximity to their own lungs," Sullivan says. "And second, they are very loud, and particularly when people are living in close proximity to one another, they can be disruptive to a neighborhood or to a location."
His bill was quietly defeated in the House last week. This week, a Senate panel rejected a similar bill introduced by freshman Senator Saddam Salim, a Democrat from Fairfax County. He says opposition to the bill came from rural areas where landscaping companies and golf course superintendents are worried about the bottom line.
"If we allow localities to do this, what if they place restrictions on businesses that are in the rural area that wouldn't be able to make the changes," Salim says.
Both Sullivan and Salim said they’ll be back again next year, adding that all they’re really asking for is permission for local governments to take action for the benefit of their communities.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
