Reducing 2-Stroke Lawn Equipment Emissions

The Utah Division of Air Quality (DAQ) is seeking public feedback on how we can reduce emissions from the use of 2-stroke gas-powered lawn equipment in the Northern Wasatch Front (NWF) nonattainment area.

While our cars have gotten cleaner and cleaner in recent years thanks to modern emission controls and catalytic converters, 2-stroke engines have not kept pace with these improvements.  In fact, using a gas-powered leaf blower for one hour is the same as driving the average vehicle 727 miles! 

Given how small and inexpensive 2-stroke engines are designed to be, complex and large emission control systems like those on modern cars aren’t feasible.  Also, the very nature of 2-stroke engines means that the combustion in the chamber of the engine is far less controlled when compared to 4-stroke counterparts. Luckily, electric motors have proved to be a great alternative for 2-stroke engines in lawn and garden applications.  

What is 2-stroke lawn equipment?

Powered by a gas and oil mixture:

• Leaf blowers
• String trimmers
• Hedge trimmers
• Chainsaws (under 6 horsepower)
• Tillers