If you own a home, currently you face the usual autumn yardwork: collecting and disposing of leaves, sawing fallen tree limbs, trimming bushes, and so on. How to save time and — if using power tools — limit air and noise pollution?

One option is to “leave the leaves,” which saves time, fertilizes the soil naturally and provides winter habitat for insects. If you have few deciduous trees nearby or do not mind a leafy stratum depriving your lawn of needed sunlight before breaking down, then go for it! Otherwise, you might run a lawn mower over the leaves to chop them up and speed the decaying process, rake the leaves into beds to serve as mulch, or make a leaf pile that will become a nutrient-rich compost. Another way to save time and provide winter habitat is to resist cutting back plants and bushes, which also provides your yard with some of the “winter interest” that is popular nowadays in gardening circles. For more information, see wildseedproject.net/2020/12/leave-the-leaves/.

For lack of time or inclination, you might employ a leaf blower, chainsaw, hedge trimmer or weed wacker. However, gasoline-powered models can damage your hearing, and their two-stroke engines emit gases that are carcinogenic, detrimental to respiratory and cardiovascular health, and especially harmful to the environment. For example, the California Air Resources Board says that operating a single gas leaf blower for one hour generates the same smog-forming emissions as a car driving 1,100 miles.

Nevertheless, gas-driven yard tools remain popular because many believe they outperform electric devices, whether corded or battery-powered. True as this was years ago, a summer 2024 review published by popularmechanics.com states that “modern battery-powered leaf blowers rival gas-powered models in terms of power, but make far less noise and don’t produce exhaust emissions.” Battery-powered blowers also require less maintenance, come with high-capacity batteries and are cheaper up front (purchasing a spare battery adds to their cost). The other cordless electric tools available for this fall’s yardwork share these advantages, so if you wish to preserve your hearing, reduce the din in your neighborhood and breath fresher air, consider going electric.

David Conwell is a former teacher and member of Brunswick’s Sustainability Committee.