Re:17B life years could be saved if air pollution was reduce...
by fogihujy on Monday September 13, 2021 @01:43AM
(#28508173)
A good old scythe is much faster than a weed whacker for larger areas. Once you get the hang of it, it's not much slower than a lawn mower. It's good excersize too.
Re:17B life years could be saved if air pollution was reduce...
by daddylongstroke on Monday September 13, 2021 @11:28AM
(#28512711)
Completely agree. It's not even close! The scythe (when used by an experienced mower) can knock out twice the area as a weed wacker can in the same amount of time, without the noise, smell, most of the maintenance hassle, and it runs on breakfast or lunch.
Re:17B life years could be saved if air pollution was reduce...
by robocat on Monday September 13, 2021 @02:46AM
(#28508498)
Interesting. I think my parents have one I could use - I will try to remember to give it a go. However I don’t have a flat lawn: instead I have verges/edges with stones, holes, and fences, so maybe less useful for my case.
Re:17B life years could be saved if air pollution was reduce...
by fogihujy on Monday September 13, 2021 @04:05AM
(#28508954)
I assume you'd cut around the fences. Once you get the hang of it, a scythe is quite precise.
Stones can be difficult if they're tall enough and everywhere. Otherwise you'd just make sure to keep the blade higher than the stones.
If you are going to ban one thing, why not just ban lawns ;-p
Although to support your point, “Quantification of the environmental and economic benefits of the electrification of lawn mowers on the US residential market”[1] abstract says “Gasoline-powered lawn mowers and garden equipment [in the USA are] accounting for a quarter of all non-road gasoline emissions.”.
[1] https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11367-021-01917-x
I inherited a large lawn mower which I use for the overgrown uneven driveway. I could replace the mower with a weed whacker, however that would then take many hours longer (for a chore I really hate doing and do as little as possible!) I hate the noise but it works. An equivalent electric mower would be completely unaffordable for me.
I thought the majority of PM2.5 emissions was due to two-stroke engines?
The only two-stroke device I own is a chainsaw. I wanted to get a battery powered chainsaw, but they are at least 3 times the price. I also own a mains powered electric chainsaw, but an extension cord is frustrating, and only reasonable to use within tens of metres from a house.