A New Jersey township voted unanimously to ban commercial leaf blowers this summer.
The blowers, often used by professional landscaping companies, will not be permitted in Maplewood from June 1 to Aug. 31. The ban was first reported by NJ.com.
The ban is meant as a pilot program that will be assessed at the end of the summer. It was put in place to combat resident noise complaints about the blowers.
At the meeting where the ordinance was passed on May 17, NJ.com reports that some residents opposed the measure. Resident Martin Youngberg told the town council residents could pay the price.
"As a homeowner and a person who has physical disabilities, I have to employ groundskeepers...if you ban the leaf blowers it's going to require more time for those people to finish the job they are doing," he said.
Homeowner George Kolodiy told NBC 4 New York on Monday that he doesn't like the sound of commercial leafblowers but thought a blanket ban went too far. He said that landscapers currently go from house to house, making for hours of noise.
"They go from one house to another altogether," he said. "It's a couple hours, you're going to hear that noise."
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Landscapers in the town, meanwhile, bristled at the ban. Charlie Bravoco said that other options -- like power brooms -- are just as loud as the leaf blowers they use.
"It's at least as loud, or definitely louder," he said.
