I’ve known for a long time that my new mower was not going to be gas powered. I get tired of listening to the almost constant hum of gas powered lawn equipment here in southwestern Indiana. To top that off, the air quality here is already poor since we’re surrounded by several very dirty coal-fired power plants. Just this last week we had two ozone warnings with local officials urging people to avoid fast food drive-thrus and trimming their lawns. The warnings certainly didn’t stop most people around here from doing what they wanted to do and spewing even more pollution into the air.

Originally I thought about just getting a push-reel mower. We have a fairly small front and back yard to begin with so there wouldn’t be a ton of effort required to push-reel mow my grass. Secondly, we live in a small home with a one car garage and don’t really have the room for a big clunky mower to sit around. A push-reel mower could hang up on the wall though and take up no floor space. Then there’s the idea of actually getting some exercise while you’re doing lawn work, something most people seem to try and avoid.

The last couple of weeks though, I changed my mind, thinking I would rather have an electric rechargeable mower. There’s several different versions available right now but T has been questioning just how long the batteries really last and how long it is before they won’t take a charge anymore. The prices aren’t easy on the pocketbook either, ranging from about $250 to $450.

So now I’m back to the beginning again, thinking about getting a push-reel. I’m looking for something that’s going to hold up well over time and has some decent features. The hunt is on! If you have any suggestions or a brand and model you’ve tried out, let me know. I’d like some feedback here!

I remember as a kid watching a neighbor of mine struggling with his electric lawn mower.  I always thought that was quite the novelty, knowing only one person who actually plugged their mower into an extension cord as opposed to a gas pump.  It always seemed a bit of a struggle for him though, wrestling with the extension cord he was dragging behind him in the yard.

Black & Decker's new 24 Volt Cordless Mulching Mower

That’s why I got excited about Black & Decker’s new 24 Volt Cordless Mulching Mower.  It’s brand new to the market and seems like a fantastic edition to anyone’s arsenal of lawn care equipment.  The mower is Energy Star certified and plugs into the wall outlet to recharge itself.  The unit isn’t suggested for large lots as it can only cut about 1/3 of an acre per charge but for smaller lots it’s ideal.  Estimates show it will cost about $10 per year in electricity to operate their new mower.  Compare that to about $5 in gas every two mows.

Why else is it such a great idea?  Americans use 800 million gallons of gas every year just to mow our lawns.  In that process, we spill more gas than the Exxon Valdez spilled into the ocean back in 1989.  Gas-powered mowers are also responsible for about 5% of our air pollution each year.  It might be hard to believe those facts but when you consider American’s lawns take up three times more land than the corn currently grown, you can see just how big of an impact your lawn can have.

If you’re interested in entering a contest to win Black & Decker’s new 24 Volt Cordless Mulching Mower, head over to the Alternative Consumer Blog and enter yourself!  You can also win an electric sweeper there too.

They’re goal is also set on continuing to provide safe, abundant and affordable feed, fiber and food.  The group’s new blog, just rolled out last week during their 5th National 25x’25 Renewable Energy Summit, contains a host of information about the progress toward that goal and what each state is doing to get there.  The blog also offers RSS feeds for those of you on the blogging go.

Sources say the car will be equipped with solar panels on the roof and will also be able to be recharged by conventional solar panels you might have on your house or business.  Toyota also hopes to eventually build and market a car that can be solely powered and recharged by it’s own installed solar panels.  The move has surprised many since Toyota is reporting its first sales loss in 70 years of business.  But the auto giant says it won’t halt it’s research in green technology despite the current bad business environment.

Toyota already has a history with solar power and other green technology.  The company’s plant in Tsutsumi has solar panels spread across it’s roof that would cover 60 tennis courts.  The panels produce enough electricity to supply 500 homes with power.  The company says the panels are reducing 740 tons a year of carbon emissions…the equivalent of 1,500 barrels of oil in reductions.

Toyota will also apparently get some help through one of it’s battery research partners, Panasonic.  Panasonic just recently took over Sanyo Electric Corp., a leader in solar energy.

I hope these researchers are able to get this done sooner rather than later and are able to make the technology affordable to the normal car buyer.  Can you imagine in sunny locales like Arizona and California, these cars would work like a dream…quietly whisking you from one errand to another powered by the cosmic giant above.

The Environmental Protection Agency broke it down for us and the results are a tad startling.  They estimate 54 million Americans mow their lawns every weekend.  We use 800 million gallons of gasoline to power all those lawn mowers and garden equipment every year.  The EPA estimates mowers are the cause of about 5% of our pollution, spewing Greenhouse Gasses and other emissions into the atmosphere unchecked.  One lawn mower is said to produce the equivalent emissions of driving 43 brand new cars for 12,000 miles.  Just one hour of mowing will produce the same amount of emissions equivalent to a 350 mile drive in your car.  And as we fuel up all our lawn equipment, Americans spill some 17 million gallons of gas each year.  That’s more fuel spilled than the disastrous Exxon Valdez oil tanker!

Those numbers show why we need to change our thinking, especially when it comes to trimming the lawn and cleaning up all the dead leaves around our house.  Convenience changed a lot of people’s thinking for the worse.  Sure it’s relatively easy to walk out to the garage, fire up the gas lawnmower and be done in 15 minutes.  Instead, everyone should be getting some essential exercise by dragging out a new push-reel lawn mower.  That’s right, a push-reel just like this one:

A new push-reel lawn mower

Technology has helped to make some advances with push-reel mowers believe it or not.  They’re much lighter than what your Grandpa might have had sitting around in his shed.  They only need their blades sharpened once every 7 to 10 years and can now cut most varieties of grass to a variety of differnt heights.  They’re quiet, don’t use any gas and give you the benefit of a little added workout.  If you want to reduce the strain even more, some of them even come in electric versions with rechargeable batteries.  It gives you up to an hour and a half of mowing time before having to recharge!  I think it’s great and plan to put one on my list instead of a gas-powered mower which is just as expensive before you even add in the cost of gas.

And for everyone using leaf blowers, I suggest putting on a pair of gloves and using a good old fashioned rake and broom for your cleanup chores.  It willl get your heart rate up, give you some fresh air and reduce the emissions required just to keep your yard looking pretty.

If you’re interested in some clean garden and lawn equipment, check out these two websites:

People Powered Machines or the Clean Air Gardening Supply

If you have ways to maintain your lawn or garden while keeping an eye on your environmental impact, please share your story!

I’m taking the wait until the tree is bare approach to leaf raking.  I’ve gone out a couple of times in the last month and created a couple of big piles to compost.  I like that idea instead of piling them into lawn and garden trash bags to be hauled off to the dump.  Then I can use the compost around the garden beds and in the lawn to add beneficial nutrients into the soil.  If you don’t have the room to compost in your own yard, you might want to think about giving the material to a local yard waste recycler.  Usually your local dump or transfer station will know of someone in the area who can help.

Composting isn’t that difficult though.  Even if you’ve got a little corner of your property you can dedicate the process, you can do a lot.  I’ve simply created a large pile of dead leaves in one corner of my yard by the garage.  It originally was well over 4 feet tall but as they have started breaking down, the pile has shrunk down to about 2 feet tall and half as wide.  Once a week, I head out with my pitchfork and turn the inside of the pile outward.  That mixes the dry, whole leaves into the middle where they can begin to break down.  I also keep the pile moist, like a rung out sponge.  So, if it hasn’t rained during the week spray your pile down with the hose.  Over a few weeks you’ll begin to notice the leaves breaking down and turning into black gold, compost!

For tomorrow:  How you can continue your fall cleanup while reducing the environmental impact

Do you think one candidate has a better energy policy than the other? Let us know who you think has the best eye for the environment and energy issues daunting our nation!