Lewes ordinance will ban gas-powered landscaping equipment

In an effort to limit air and noise pollution, Lewes Mayor and City Council unanimously voted to ban all handheld gas-powered landscaping equipment by Dec. 31, 2025.

Under the adopted ordinance, the city expects residents and landscaping companies to move to battery or electric tools. The expectation is that equipment will be replaced by Dec. 31, 2022, with the exception of leaf blowers, string trimmers and chainsaws. Those three pieces will then be fully banned at the end of 2025. Lawn mowers are fully exempt from the ordinance.

Councilman Rob Morgan, architect of the ordinance, said the two dates give plenty of notice to businesses and homeowners, and ample time for battery power technology to evolve far enough so it’s feasible to make the transition to green equipment.

Morgan amended his proposed ordinance after hearing comments from several landscaping companies during a public hearing in November. Most of those who spoke said the battery technology for some tools is already sufficient, but most equipment isn’t ready for commercial use. Morgan’s original ordinance proposed a ban for all equipment in 2022. He added the exemption to 2025 for equipment that landscaping companies said was lagging behind.

Deputy Mayor Bonnie Osler suggested the ordinance only apply to the commercial sector, but ultimately went along with the ordinance that applies to all. She requested that council revisit the issue six months before each phase of the ordinance is set to begin so council can determine if the expectations are still reasonable.

Councilman Tim Ritzert said the ordinance sends an important message to the public.

“I think it shows that city council is willing to take a stand and draw a line in the sand,” he said. “It’s showing that we have a concern about this gasoline-powered equipment, and we’d like to move more toward a green community.”

Councilman Andrew Williams agreed. He said by providing two and five years’ notice, people can begin to phase out their gas-powered equipment.

“We have to put it out there that this is something we value as a community,” he said.