Residents press New Canaan council to curb gas-powered leaf blowers; council debates scope and timing

Dozens of New Canaan residents urged the Town Council on April 22 to limit the use of gas-powered leaf blowers in the summer, citing noise, air pollution and health concerns, while councilors debated how strictly to regulate devices and whether electric alternatives should be exempt.

The public comment period opened with callers and residents delivering similar messages. "For too many residents in our community, these machines turn tranquil neighborhoods into stressful neighborhoods," said Buco of 337 Springwater Lane, urging the council to "pass the resolution with the hard surface restriction" to reduce noise and pollution. Lars Anderson said the debate has been ongoing since 2021 and warned against repeated delays: "I've heard...that there's not enough time for landscapers to adjust and that we should delay another month which is going to turn into another year." Jane Horowitz, a physician, described possible health harms for children and read medical findings on pollutant exposure, saying "children's vulnerability to GLBs" merits policy action.

Speakers across the public-comment period suggested similar edits: broaden the ordinance's definition to capture wheeled and ride-on gas-powered units in addition to handheld and backpack machines; limit residential use on lawns while allowing single-use on hard or man-made surfaces; clarify that snow removal and emergency storm cleanup are exceptions; and require the ordinance to cover all gas-powered units to prevent loopholes. Several residents discussed worker safety and suggested incentives or buyback programs to ease the switch to electric equipment.

Council members spent much of the meeting weighing those suggestions. The council discussed restoring language that would limit homeowners to a single gas-powered blower used only on hard surfaces, expanding the technical definition to include wheeled/walk-behind and ride-on machines, and the practical question of whether to ban or limit electric blowers as well. "I would remove any restriction on electric leaf blowers" was a proposal voiced during council discussion as a possible compromise to encourage a transition, while other members said removing electric limits would not address the ordinance's central noise concerns.

Members also raised enforcement and outreach questions. Councilor Kim Norton expressed concern about the ordinance imposing new outreach costs if it required annual town-run education or mailings, while others proposed voluntary town-supported education through community groups. The parking commission and bylaws and ordinances committee were cited as venues to refine language, and the council agreed to continue work in the bylaws and ordinances committee on May 5 and consider scheduling a special vote before Memorial Day if wording and notice requirements can be finalized.

The council did not adopt final ordinance language on April 22. Instead, members asked staff and the bylaws and ordinances committee to redraft text (including a broadened definition of gas-powered leaf blowers and a clarified hard-surface exception) and return to the council; they also discussed moving any effective date to provide adequate public notice and to allow landscapers and residents time to prepare.

Next steps: the council's bylaws and ordinances committee will reconvene May 5 to consider edits and public outreach; some members indicated they would support a version that exempts electric blowers to accelerate voluntary conversion, while others urged keeping restrictions on electric devices' hours or numbers to protect summer quiet for residents.