Gathering Places
Gathering Places
Noisy leaf-blowers
turn pretty promenade
into pathway to hellAre you planning a quiet, leisurely Sunday morning stroll on the promenade along the Ala Wai Canal? If so, be sure to take along a gas mask and ear plugs. The beautiful tree-lined walkway seems idyllic; that is, until you get there and find city landscapers using gasoline-powered mowers, edgers, trimmers, weed-whackers and worst of all, leaf-blowers. The work starts at 8 a.m. and goes on all morning.
A number of cities in California, including Los Angeles, have banned the use of gasoline-powered leaf-blowers, calling them hazardous to peoples' health.
The Noise Pollution Clearinghouse in Montpelier, Vt., lists some reasons why:
>> Air pollution: A gasoline-powered leaf-blower generates as much tailpipe emissions in one hour as an automobile does over 350 miles. The difference is that a car emits all that pollution over a big stretch of road, while a leaf-blower deposits it all in one area.
>> Dangerous airborne substances: Leaf-blowers spread dust, dirt, bacteria, mold, animal droppings, herbicides and pesticides into the air we breathe.
>> Noise: Blowers whine "like dental drills gone berserk," said the Detroit Free Press. Added the Christian Science Monitor: "Blowers blare and screech, kick up dirt and dust and accomplish nothing."
>> Quality of life: Sick people, mothers with infants, night workers who sleep during the day, retired people, students who need quiet time to write or study and homeworkers all need to minimize the loud noises that increasingly assail them during the day-time hours.
>> Health concerns: In California, OSHA allows only 20 minutes of aggregate daily exposure to a noise level of more than 100 decibels, while most gardeners run their blowers at 109, for most of the day. Clearly, most gardeners use leaf-blowers far in excess of the level Cal OSHA recommends as safe to the operator.
>> Environmental damage: Gasoline-powered leaf-blowers -- which have a muzzle velocity of 150 mph or more -- blow away topsoil and ground cover, which, if left in place, would help soil hold precious moisture and would minimize the number of times plants have to be watered. This is crucial, especially in drought years.
The city official who approved the Sunday work schedule failed to take into consideration the fact that the Ala Wai is a residential area. There are are five high-rise condos in the one block between Kalakaua Avenue Bridge and the Ala Moana Boulevard Bridge alone. This means that more than 1,000 residents are victims of this unnecessary and unacceptable high-decibel assault on our sanity.
There always has been traffic noise on Ala Wai Boulevard (although it gets worse every year) because it is one of the main downtown arteries, and that is something residents must accept. However, the persistent noise of landscaping from the promenade is really an affront to residents of the area and to pedestrians who frequent the walkway.
To schedule the work on Sundays shows a lack of sensitivity on the part of city bureaucrats. Sunday is a day of rest for most of us. It is a day to recuperate from the hustle and bustle of the daily rat race and prepare for the week ahead. Some people would say it is sacrilegious to spoil Sunday mornings with ear-splitting noise and choking gasoline fumes.
The taxpayers of Honolulu paid for the promenade. Please, Mayor Harris, stop the noise and pollution so we can enjoy it.
Jan Sanders has lived in an Ala Wai Boulevard condominium for 20 years.