| In much of the northern hemisphere, the time of year is nigh for both brilliant fall foliage and its inescapable corollary: the persistent drone of high-powered leaf blowers. This isn't just autumn's loudest hardware — blowing one hour's worth of leaves with a gas-powered machine produces about as many smog-forming chemicals as driving 1,100 miles in a Toyota Camry. After years of pressure, these chemical (and audible) impacts are now pushing US municipalities to ban gas-powered tools, and presenting an opportunity for a new class of electric options. And as those alternatives become more powerful and affordable than ever before, the American lawn is finally starting to go green. "It's a better way to do business — better for the environment, better for the guys, better for the clients," says Jared Kocaj, owner of Outdoor Digs, a landscaping company in New Jersey. While a small cohort of noise- and climate-conscious homeowners started switching to electric options years ago, the most important shift will come from companies like Kocaj's: commercial landscaping crews that dominate lawn-gear purchases and keep their machines in constant use. The average commercial lawn mower, for example, runs 406 hours a year, or 17 straight days, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.  Jared Kocaj, owner of Outdoor Digs landscaping company in Morristown, New Jersey. Photographer: Lanna Apisukh/Bloomberg Over the past two years, Kocaj shelled out $65,000 to electrify Outdoor Digs, purchasing two massive mowers that can handle a full day's work on a single charge, plus a truck full of smaller mowers, blowers, trimmers and saws. His battery-powered leaf blowers, made by Stihl Inc., are about as loud as an electric toothbrush — even as they pump air out at a velocity of up to 154 miles per hour. "We now have battery tools that rival the power of gas," says Murray Bishop, Stihl's vice president of sales and marketing. "On the pro side, gas is still king, but battery is growing quickly." Writ large, the potential of quieter, cleaner lawn care is an enormous business opportunity. The companies making lawn equipment shipped some 38 million tools last year, according to the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute, a trade group of manufacturers. Just over half of those sales were of electric tools, so manufacturers can still expect plenty of upside ahead as the commercial sector embraces new technology. Stihl now sells four different battery platforms and an array of chargers, as well as hedge trimmers that run longer on a battery than they do on a tank of gas. Meanwhile, Toro Co. is working with Home Depot on stocking some stores exclusively with electric tools, and Stanley Black & Decker Inc. CEO Don Allan called the trend towards battery-operated machines a "growth catalyst" for the company.  A lawn worker inserts the battery into a hedge trimmer used by eco-friendly Outdoor Digs landscaping company. Photographer: Lanna Apisukh/Bloomberg Kicking the backyard gas habit may not be voluntary forever. Realizing the noise and chemical pollution associated with gas-powered blowers, policymakers all over the US are now passing measures to eliminate them. California was first, voting in December to ban the sale of most small gas-powered tools by the end of next year. The state has almost as many lawn tools as cars and trucks — and only about 6% of the gear used by professionals is electric, according to an estimate by the California Air Resources Board. A string of smaller governments have since followed suit, including Washington, DC; Burlington, Vermont; Portland, Oregon and Palm Beach, Florida. Seattle's City Council approved a similar measure last month, and in Outdoor Digs' backyard of New Jersey, blower bans are spreading. "There's Montclair, Summit, Short Hills," Kocaj says. "We kind of saw it coming and got ahead of it."  Artificial turf is seen outside a Las Vegas home. Photographer: Bridget Bennett/Bloomberg Electric gear isn't the only change coming to a backyard near you: The future of lawns everywhere is an open question. -
Last year Nevada passed legislation requiring that decorative grass be removed across the state, with some exceptions—after 2026. -
In the UK, a country synonymous with rain, lawn owners are accepting shades of yellow and brown amid green, particularly after this summer's drought. -
Facing its own drought, California in May adopted a ban on watering certain green spaces and placed limits on how often people could water their yards. Like getting the Green Daily? Subscribe to Bloomberg.com for unlimited access to breaking news on climate and energy, data-driven reporting and graphics and Bloomberg Green magazine. Read and share this story on the web here. On this week's episode of Zero, Akshat Rathi sits down with Bill Gates to talk about Europe's energy crisis, the landmark US climate bill, and whether people will really change their lifestyles for the sake of the climate. Listen to the episode — and subscribe now on Apple, Spotify, Google or Stitcher to get new episodes every Thursday. | 
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