Hundreds of thousands of tons of fallen leaves fall in Germany every autumn. Only a single beech drops about 28 kilograms of leaves. In order to become masters of the masses, many communities and hobby gardeners rely on leaf blowers. But on the noisy equipment is increasingly criticized, now advises the Federal Ministry of Environment of leaf blowers.
The rationale: Too loud, too dirty and a potential threat to the environment. Some leaf blowers reach volumes of up to 120 decibels; this corresponds to the noise of a jackhammer. In addition, many are fueled by gas and emit exhaust fumes.
Absorbed and blown
"The use of a vacuum cleaner can also be considered to have lethal effects on insects in the foliage," says a response from the Ministry of the Environment to a small request from the Greens, the SPIEGEL present. At first the "Augsburger Allgemeine" reported.
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"In the litter layer on the ground live many small animals, such as worms, insects, spiders or even small mammals, which can lose the habitat and the food base by removing the foliage," warns the Ministry of Environment on. There is a risk that small animals are absorbed or blown and thereby take damage.
The devices should therefore not be used privately at all and in public space only if there is no alternative.
According to the Federal Environment Ministry, a complete ban is not possible for European and competition law reasons.
