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Reducing 2-Stroke Lawn Equipment Emissions

We need your feedback on a new rule!

  • Give feedback on the new rule before it is adopted
  • Limits use of 2-stroke lawn equipment on poor air quality days; does not include lawn mowers

Lawn care businesses: Get paid to go electric!

  • Up to $3,000 total credit per business
  • Recycle gas-powered leaf blowers, trimmers, or chainsaws and get online credit at participating stores

New rule timeline

Restrictions on equipment use will be phased in, impacting different groups over the next three years.

Why it matters

While our cars have gotten cleaner and cleaner in recent years thanks to modern emission controls and catalytic converters, 2-stroke engines have not kept pace with these improvements.  In fact, using a gas-powered leaf blower for one hour is the same as driving the average vehicle 727 miles

Given how small and inexpensive 2-stroke engines are designed to be, complex and large emission control systems like those on modern cars aren’t feasible.  Also, the very nature of 2-stroke engines means that the combustion in the chamber of the engine is far less controlled when compared to 4-stroke counterparts. Luckily, electric motors have proved to be a great alternative for 2-stroke engines in lawn and garden applications.  

Examples of 2-stroke lawn equipment

Powered by a gas and oil mixture:

  • Leaf blowers
  • String trimmers
  • Hedge trimmers
  • Chainsaws
  • Tillers

Lawn mowers typically are NOT 2-stroke.

Get Involved

Public meeting dates and times will be announced soon.

Downloadables

Methodology


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