Eco-friendly landscaping companies start seeing green
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Illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios
Autumn is the season for droning, carbon-belching leaf blowers that make working from home an assault on the senses. A greener alternative is taking root.
Why it matters: A quieter, more environmentally friendly landscaping company can reduce headaches and help reduce a household's (and widespread industry's) air pollution.
Catch up quick: The advent of gas-powered lawn care equipment shaved hours off homeowners' yard work and boosted landscaping companies' productivity.
- With convenience also comes cost. The two-cycle engines powering the tools are also terrible for the environment and emit greenhouse gases on par with automobile tailpipes.
Zoom in: Shades of Green Permaculture's EcoLawns service uses all-electric equipment — backed up by batteries charged by a solar panel array on the work trailer — and mows lawns biweekly to encourage plant growth and biodiversity.
- The full-service landscape design business has 25 employees. It hit the $1 million revenue mark in 2020 and now grosses $4 million annually, founder and CEO Brandy Hall told Axios.
Another company, Quiet Green Lawns, uses leaf blowers that are 10 times quieter than gas-guzzling ones, owner Bruce Taylor told Axios.
Yes, and: Electric lawn care tools pack less power, and biodiverse yards require more attention, which could mean longer visits by work crews.
- But they're quieter, cleaner and competitive when it comes to price and quality of service compared with firms that use gas-powered equipment, Hall and Taylor said.
Reality check: In 2023, the Georgia General Assembly approved preemptive legislation pushed by landscaping companies that prohibits local governments from regulating gas-powered lawn equipment.
- The proposal came amid heated debates over the possible regulation of gas stoves across the country.
Context: According to a 2023 study by Environment America, the carbon emissions from lawn care and garden equipment in Georgia were the equivalent of emissions from 230,000 typical cars.
- Gwinnett County led metro Atlanta, which is one of the Southeast's hubs for nitrous oxide, particulate matter and emissions.
What's next: Advances in battery and equipment technology, plus greater awareness about climate change and a desire for a quieter, gentler leaf blower, have moved green lawn care companies past the proof-of-concept stage, Taylor said.