Environmental

The Problem with Fossil Fuel Powered Equipment
- Two-Stroke Engines
- Four-Stroke Engines
Local Impact
Why We Care About Emissions
- Immediate Health Effects
- Strategic Resource Preservation
Our Electric Equipment Solution
Our Carbon Offset Approach
Ongoing Monitoring
References

The Problem with Fossil Fuel Powered Equipment

Garden equipment typically uses two types of engines: two-stroke or four-stroke. Each poses unique environmental challenges:

Two-Stroke Engines

Based on research from the 2000 Atmospheric Environment study:

34% of fuel completely bypasses combustion through "short-circuiting," flowing directly out as pollution
Of the remaining 66% that enters combustion:
- Only 40% fully oxidized to CO2
- The remaining 60% converts to carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons
Produces 7 times more hydrocarbon emissions than four-stroke engines
Mixing fuel and oil leads to additional toxic emissions

Four-Stroke Engines

While more efficient than two-strokes, these engines are still far more polluting than car engines. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, petrol lawn mowers can produce as much as 11 times more air pollution than a car, per unit of run time. This is because:

They lack the sophisticated emissions control systems found in modern vehicles
They run at very rich air/fuel ratios, achieving only 50% complete fuel combustion
They operate without catalytic converters or other pollution reduction technologies
They have no computerized engine management systems to optimize combustion
Unlike cars, they often operate at full throttle, maximizing emissions

Local Impact

Research in the Newcastle region demonstrated lawn equipment's outsized effect:

Contributes 5.2% of all carbon monoxide emissions
Produces 11.6% of non-methane hydrocarbon emissions
Creates higher concentration of pollutants at ground level where people breathe
Has an outsized impact in suburban areas with high density of lawn maintenance

Why We Care About Emissions

Aside from the issue of climate change, we use carbon emissions as a useful proxy for two other critical issues:

1. Immediate Health Effects
Garden equipment emissions pose direct health risks through:

Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5)
- Penetrates deep into lungs
- Linked to respiratory and cardiovascular disease
- Particularly harmful to children and elderly
- Remains in local area air for hours or days
Ground-Level Ozone
- Forms when equipment emissions react with sunlight
- Triggers asthma and breathing problems
- Damages lung tissue
- Creates visible smog
Carbon Monoxide
- Reduces oxygen delivery in bloodstream
- Particularly dangerous in enclosed spaces
- Higher concentration at ground level

2. Strategic Resource Preservation
Beyond immediate pollution concerns, preserving accessible fossil fuel reserves serves a crucial long-term function. If global civilization faces a major setback:

Easily accessible fossil fuels would be essential for rebuilding
Modern renewable technologies require complex industrial infrastructure that couldn't be immediately recreated
Most easily accessible oil and coal has already been extracted
Remaining fossil fuels require increasingly complex technology to reach
Without accessible fossil fuel reserves as a "bootstrap" resource, restarting civilization would be nearly impossible
Keeping some fossil fuels in the ground preserves them as an "emergency backup" for humanity

Our Electric Equipment Solution

By using all-electric equipment, we eliminate:

Direct emissions from fuel combustion
Partially burned fuel emissions
Oil and fuel spills
Local noise pollution

Our Carbon Offset Approach

Traditional carbon offset approaches focus primarily on direct carbon removal through methods like tree planting, which can cost $20+ per tonne and may not create lasting change. We take a different approach.

We use the Effective Altruism Australia Environment Fund because they focus on independently vetted systemic solutions through:

Policy reform
Technology development
High-leverage interventions
Structural changes that reduce emissions long-term

At the conservative estimate of $15 per tonne of CO2, we double-offset (200%) our calculated emissions to ensure maximum positive impact. This approach addresses root causes rather than just symptoms, creating more sustainable long-term change.