To the editor:

I recently picked up your Nov. 18 issue and was delighted to find myself quoted in your editorial (“In Our Opinion: Leaf it to Bainbridge”). Delighted, that is, until I reached the condescending and dismissive second half of your opinion piece.

To provide context, I offer a couple of quotes from my letter to members of the city council regarding leaf blowers:

“As a 22-year Central Ward resident of Bainbridge Island, I have noticed a significant escalation of environmental noise over the past few years. What used to be merely a nuisance has become a major source of stress and irritation for my family. The noise level has increased both during and outside of work hours and persists on the weekends as well, from as early as 6:30 a.m. to as late as 9:30 p.m.” The main source of this noise is “a cacophony of [gas powered] leaf blowers. This occurs at almost any time of the day but seems to have become an almost continuous source of noise during working hours, even in the rain! The noise often extends well into the evening and is generated primarily by gardening businesses.” Such noise may not be a large issue for those living in the rural or semi-rural areas of Bainbridge Island, but for those of us in the higher-density neighborhoods of Winslow, it represents a significant degradation of our quality of life.

Nor are the negative impacts of leaf blowers limited to noise; they are also major sources of air pollution. In a test published on the automobile website edmunds.com, it was found that a 2-cycle leaf blower (the most common kind) generated 23 times the carbon monoxide, and 300 times the non-methane hydrocarbons of a 2011 411-horsepower V8 Ford Raptor pickup truck! Beyond pollution from exhaust gases, they stir up dust, allergens, herbicides, pesticides and industrial pollutants present in our soil. Battery-powered leaf blowers at least offer a partial solution with reduced noise and a large reduction of carbon-based pollution.

Communities across the country have recognized and taken steps to address this problem, most commonly by instituting a ban on gasoline-powered leaf blowers. These include the entire city of Los Angeles (representing more than 4 million people), and the county of Alameda, California. Community bans have been instituted in Massachusetts, New York, Maryland, Illinois, Florida, Connecticut, and Colorado. A list of almost 100 cities and counties with leaf-blower controls can be found on the Consumer Reports web site.

I wholeheartedly support the efforts of our city council members to address this modern-day plague.

DAVID SNYDER

Bainbridge Island