Homeowners and California's Green Lawn Care Law

 It's an early morning in May and I am sitting on my front porch with a cup of tea. The air is cool and the sun is barely over the horizon. I am sitting on the porch to enjoy this moment, but I want you to know that 30 minutes ago the soil in my front yard was crawling with earthworms following green leaves left down all over the lawn. The earthworms are gone now because I mowed yesterday. When I turned the corner of my house and looked at my front lawn, there were no visible signs of life except for a few blades of grass.

What you can't see in the picture above is that my lawn was grey and brown and lifeless for about three months. I live in California, and we have had some severe drought conditions over the last twelve months or so. Several people asked me if I was going to water my lawn. I replied, "No." Why? Because the law now requires that California residents only water their lawns two times per week. My green lawn is totally legal because I live in a small apartment complex and it's what we Californians call an "engineered landscape".

Engineered Landscape Design

The people who designed our complex had a really good idea, which is that if homeowners use the right amount of gravel mulch and plant their lawns with certain species of drought tolerant grasses then they can simply water them every other day. I am always curious about how things work so I asked one of my neighbours who lives in an apartment complex how his sprinkler system operated. He had no idea, but I noticed that many of the apartment complexes in our area had thick gravel mulch beds around their sprinkler heads so they could water frequently without wasting a significant amount of water.

California will ban the sale of new gas-powered lawn care equipment in 2024

Several of my neighbours have some pretty nice lawns. If you live in California, then your lawn is probably green, lush and healthy too. Why? Because the State Water Resources Control Board has given its permission to our apartment complex property managers to water every day. The property managers are fully aware that an engineered landscape needs less water than a natural landscape. This is what you should know about California's Green Lawn Care Law.

Act Now To Pass Lawn Care Laws That Will Protect The Environment!

The people who live in my apartment complex are very lucky because our property managers already follow all of the new environmental restrictions concerning water use on the property. My first neighbor said it best, "Who cares how much we water as long as there is no runoff?" That's a good question because we know that our property managers could never use just one inch of water per month and that means they can't schedule lawn sprinkler systems to run for 30 minutes once or twice each week.

The State Water Resources Control Board's Valley Enforcement Team has stepped up enforcement of irrigation violations since water restrictions were implemented. As a result, fines have been issued to both homeowners and landscaping contractors who do not comply with the rules set out by the State Water Resources Control Board:

1) No watering within 48 hours after it rains;

2) No watering landscaping to the point of causing runoff onto sidewalks or streets;

3) Landscaping cannot be watered within four hours of sunrise or four hours before sunset.

Ban On Gas-Powered Lawn Mowers, Garden Equipment And Trimmers

The new law will ban the sale of gas-powered trimmers in 2024. The law that went into effect January 1, 2010 requires that landscaping companies hire licensed professionals to handle pesticides. By 2014 it is expected that all landscape companies will have to be certified through a state program.

The law will ban the use of gas-powered blowers like leaf blowers to clean driveways and sidewalks. The law will prohibit any person, firm or corporation from selling, offering for sale or giving away a gasoline engine starting mechanism as part of an edger, trimmer, lawn mower or other product intended for residential purposes.

This includes the sale of gas-powered leaf blowers used for moving debris, cleaning driveways and sidewalks.

How Will The Ban On Gas-Powered Lawn Care Equipment Affect Homeowners? 

The cost of an electric leaf blower is about the same as a gasoline powered leaf blower. The most noticeable difference between the two products is that the weighted head on an electric unit does not have to constantly move forward and backwards, which means you are constantly pushing or pulling. Many people ask themselves why they will be affected by this law?

The answer is simple, people use gasoline powered blowers for household chores. With this ban in place, homeowners will have to spend more time cleaning their properties.

Ban on Gas-Powered Leaf Blower & Lawn Care Equipment Appliances

The ban is an environmental measure that seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 15 percent the year 2021 and 40 percent by 2030.

In the year 2022 California will ban the sale of new electric lawn tractors and push mowers. By 2025 homeowners in California can only use electric lawn mowers, trimmers and other gardening appliances.

The law is a result of a growing concern for carbon emission reduction due to Climate Change which is also known as Global Warming.

California homeowners are loyal to their gas-powered riding mowers or raving about their battery-powered string trimmers and leaf blowers. It's a sad reality that there is no place for gas-powered lawn mowers, leaf blowers and trimmers in California from 2021.

The next step will be to ban the use of gasoline engines on small engine appliances. The State of California already banned the use of gasoline engines on larger tools such as mowers or weed whackers more than 3 ½ horsepower in 2004.

California is the first state to ban gas-powered lawn care equipment and at this point there have been no talks yet of implementing the ban alongside other states. While President Biden's administration has not commented on California's decision, a number of environmental groups support the measure including Oceana which is a U.S.-based international organization that works to protect and restore the world's oceans.

California residents are not the only ones to ban gas-powered equipment, in 2001 San Francisco passed a law prohibiting the use of gasoline-powered leaf blowers during the months between April 1st and November 30th.

Since California is known for being strict when it comes to environmental regulation, other states have already started to follow the example of the Golden State. On January 1st 2010 Oregon implemented a law banning the use of gasoline-powered blowers in residential areas during certain months between April 15th and September 15th.

The restriction on gas-powered equipment does not only apply to handheld devices but also larger garden appliances such as lawn mowers and trimmers. These larger tools already come with an electric cord or can be used with a battery but most people choose to use gasoline-powered engines.

The ban on gas-powered equipment is starting to spread throughout the country and more than 30 states have introduced legislation restricting the use of gas powered leaf blowers and trimmers.

The state of New York recently passed a law to ban the use of gasoline-powered trimmers and leaf blowers in counties outside of New York City starting July 1st this year. The ordinance includes fines for $250.00 to $350.00 for first time offenders and $350.00 to $500.00 for repeat offenders.

The ban on gas-powered equipment is a positive move toward reducing greenhouse gases and protecting the environment but at the same time it limits homeowners' choice of using different tools for outdoor jobs. An electric string trimmer or leaf blower might take more time to complete a simple job such as clearing leaves from your driveway or sidewalks.

The other solution is to invest in cordless tools that come with a lithium-ion battery and charge it before you begin working.

People who want to continue using gas-powered equipment will have the option of taking their business out of state or buying expensive equipment such as backpack leaf blowers for sale which run on diesel fuel. Some homeowners might just buy a second gas-powered trimmer or leaf blower to keep in another location.

Although environmentalists have been working hard to find alternative methods of power generation, the sun doesn't always shine and the wind doesn't always blow. In areas where sunshine is abundant such as California, homeowners who take advantage of solar energy for their electricity might be limited to using battery-powered tools for their outdoor needs.

As many as 33 states have introduced legislation restricting the use of gas powered leaf blowers and trimmers, but without a federal law that reduces pollution across state borders it becomes difficult for homeowners who live in states with no restrictions on gasoline equipment to keep up.

The ban on gas-powered equipment is a step in the right direction, but perhaps we should consider promoting clean sources of energy such as solar and wind power while we promote electric garden tools that use rechargeable batteries.

Eventually, California homeowners have to embrace the new law and shift from gas-powered to electric-powered equipment.

California, Oregon and New York are examples of states that have implemented or are planning to implement legislation restricting the use of gasoline-powered leaf blowers and trimmers. There is a high demand for clean sources of energy such as wind and sun power. This law could be an opportunity for homeowners in California to shift from gas-powered equipment to