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Ask HN: How much are leaf blowers contributing to climate change?
Sitting in my car after dropping my kid off at school getting noisily massaged by a leaf blower and assaulted by the two-stroke fumes.
Just wondering why these things aren't being phased out more aggressively especially in captain planet country (california) or if it really matters.
- clscott 5y agoIt's a drop in the bucket vs container ships and cars. The containership situation can only have gotten worse since this article was published https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2009/apr/09/shipping-pollution https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2009/apr/09/shipping...
- missedthecue 5y agoContainerships emit very little carbon due to the variety of fuel they use. In fact, because the major sink of methane in the atmosphere is by reaction with OH radicals, research has shown that the NOx emissions from ship travel leads to a net global cooling effect! The main threat of containership emissions from bunker fuel is the sulfur content which isn't very nice for the respiratory tract of humans and other mammals. That's why there are bans on burning that type of fuel within so many miles of port.
- eesmith 5y agoSources? From https://ssl.law.uq.edu.au/journals/index.php/maritimejournal/article/viewFile/126/172 https://ssl.law.uq.edu.au/journals/index.php/maritimejournal... I read something rather different: > CO2 is the main greenhouse gas emitted by ships. Methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from ship engines have a minor global warming role compared with CO2. Further, SOx, NOx, PM and VOC also have a minor role in global warming. Particulate matter arising from SOx emissions has a potential cooling effect and/or creates local climate disturbance (see section 6.1). The sulphur content of marine fuels will decrease due to IMO MARPOL Annex VI and other measures. Page 27 says: > Fuglestvedt et al[10] claim net cooling for shipping. Bows pointed out that their methodology was flawed as they did not account for cumulative effect of CO2[11]. That is, CO2 that has accumulated goes on accumulating, but other pollutant concentrations remain steady. The sulphate particulates have a relatively short lifetime in the atmosphere in terms of global warming. [11] is http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn13157-transport-emissions-study-misleading-say-experts.html http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn13157-transport-emissi... .
- garmaine 5y agoAlmost zilch. These things should be phased out for health reasons. But climate change? A drop in the ocean.
- detaro 5y agoBigger concern is probably local pollution. That said, I thought it was in the news recently that California is banning them?
- eesmith 5y agoCA is banning the sale of small off-road engines. Not banning the use of ones already sold. Some CA cities ban their use entirely. https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/article/article/napa-valley-town-joins-sonoma-in-powering-off-gas-leaf-blowers-before-calif/ https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/article/article/napa... says Yountville and Sonoma are two of them.