To the Editor:

There is rarely a day when I am not bombarded by the roar of industrial mowers, the whine of weed-whackers, edgers, and, finally, blowers. It often goes on all day and is so noisy that I get in my car and leave. 

But inevitably, wherever I end up, there are more landscapers making more noise. Even beautiful wooded trails, such as at Mountain Lakes, back up to houses where the noise of blowers pierce the solitude of a quiet nature hike.

I can tell you, having worked in landscaping, that fall leaves can be raked in the same amount of time as being blown around, with no cost to anyone’s sanity, work productivity, or health.

In my complex, even pine needles (wonderfully fragrant) are blown away and replaced by mulch. In a misguided attempt to blow every single leaf out of a bed or lawn, landscrapers (no typo) often blow everything else to bits, defying the whole purpose of their work.

It is past time for some regulation of these noisy tools. In addition to banning blowers in summer, I would like to see them banned year round. And many industrial mowers are more powerful than they need to be. I would like to see their decibels lowered and regulated if possible.

Judy Clark
Griggs Drive