So as soon as the Emmy telecast ended, I began looking for a leafblower powered by Al Gore’s tears, just like that cool one that Stephen Colbert was using. Sadly, no such piece of equipment exists. Colbert, your truthiness has given way to fibbiness! But I did find out a few things about leafblowers.
    First, the earth does not like them. Emissions from a gas-powered leaf-blower in one hour are said to equal the tailpipe emissions of a car driving 350 miles, according to the green group New American Dream. And who's breathing them in? You are. "It's never good to be at the tail end of an engine," says Kathryn Phillips, an air pollution control advocate for Environmental Defense.
    Second, there is an alternative. It is called a rake. Skip the health club and give it a whirl: It burns calories at the rate of 100 to 200 per half hour. If you do not have time to rake, hire neighborhood children. And if you still feel compelled to blow, electric models are a bit kinder to the environment than their gassy brethren. As for me, I’m planning to let my leaves pile up until someone develops a tear-powered model.
    (P.S. Did you catch the ad during the Emmy broadcast about paint that is kind to the environment? Turns out there is such a thing! Check greenseal.org for a list of paints that have fewer nasty ingredients, like volatile organic compounds, and no odor.)

— Marc Silver

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