Battery Powered Eco Performance
The performance of battery powered garden tools has improved dramatically over the course of the last decade. Battery powered mowers can now run 40 to 60 minutes on a single charge.
Powered by lithium-ion batteries, these tools are easy to start, they run quietly, and they do not spew out toxic fumes.
Eco Friendly Petrol Heads?
It seems of late there has been some scaremongers stating the fact that electric battery powered garden tools are just as damaging to the environment than that of its petrol counterparts.
However, there have been numerous, well funded studies in a similar field of electric cars vs petrol cars which clearly disproves this.
Weighing up the Petrol Effects on the Environment
If you look at the scientific tests that prove the emissions from petrol garden tools are by far more dangerous to the air we breathe and the atmosphere, than battery powered garden tools.
It has been shown that running an average petrol garden tool, be it a lawn mower, leaf blower, chain saw, hedge trimmer or grass trimmer, produces the equivalent air pollution and noise pollution as running 11 new cars for the same amount of time! (Ref 1).
Indeed petrol garden tools are thought to account for up to 45% of off road petrol emissions, around the same % of Volatile Organic Compounds (Ref 2). and 50% of dangerous fine particle matter (Ref 3) found in the air around most towns and cities in the world.
Eco Friendly Battery Powered Tools in Comparison
On the other hand, battery powered garden equipment has a very low carbon, volatile organic compound and dangerous fine partial matter output making for a much greener pollution footprint. As well as creating much less noise pollution, the average battery powered lawn mower is measured at around the same level as the average domestic washing machine.
In fact the biggest pollution problem is in the mining of materials and in the making of the batteries themselves, along with the “disposal of the batteries*” when no longer useable. However huge strides are being made in this regard in an effort to make batteries a truely sustainable asset in our future (Ref: 7). And with the “recycling of the batteries*” components it looks like they are heading in the right direction in reducing the current amount of pollution in this process.
The Big Question
“Would you rather give your children the smell of freshly mowed grass on a beautiful summers day or have them inhale dangerous gasses from the polluted exhaust fumes of petrol run machines? ”
Taking the Right Steps Forward
We should take into consideration all facts that should lead us in the right direction in trying to reverse the damage that has been done to the planet already.
With goverment banning the sale of all petrol and diesel cars by 2030 (Ref 4) we wonder when local governments will phase out and ban petrol driven garden tools too.
Climate Change - Who is doing What?
Finally politicians and leaders are imposing these changes. The information they are relaying on is coming from scientist and natural historians, who thankfully are now being heard by the bigwigs. I guess the most famous of these would be Sir David Attenborough (Ref 5), who has been instrumental in bringing the horrors of human actions over the past decades to the public eye.
Remember climate change was first being reported in 1988 over 30 years ago (Ref 6) and only now are people taking notice. These people are in charge of directing us into a cleaner more environmentally friendly era.
So What does the Future Hold?
With the evolution of natural means of producing electricity such as wind, water and solar power along with ongoing research into other eco friendly energy solutions, at least the future looks greener.
It seems, hopefully, oil along with petrol driven machinery will become a thing of the past. As indeed will burning fossil fuels to generate electricity. Although neither will disappear in our lifetimes, at least in the case of electrical energy efforts are being made to guide us in the right direction.
Results of Battery Powered vs Petrol Powered
In conclusion, and hopefully you agree when taking into consideration the facts above, that although only a small step in the right direction, changing over to battery powered garden equipment is at least a start and one that we could all make. After 30 years notice, is it not about time we started to make the move in getting greener and try to leave a planet for our children to enjoy.
*Please note - An important green issue to adhere to with battery powered tool is to always remember to recycle your batteries when disposing of them.
You should be able to do this for free at your local recycling unit. If you are in the UK more info can be found here. www.recyclenow.com
References
- California Air Resource Board: Fact Sheet
- EPA Environmental Protection Agency: What are volatile organic compounds (VOCs)?
- NYC Department of Health: Fine Particles (PM 2.5) Questions and Answer
- GOV.co.uk: Government takes historic step towards net-zero with end of sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030
- BBC: Sir David Attenborough warns of climate 'crisis moment
- National Geographic: Climate Change First Became News 30 Years Ago. Why haven't we fixed it?
- World Economic Forum: Metal-free batteries could make the industry more ethical and sustainable