Ill winds blow over leaf cleanup

IS NEWTON a haven for victims? I don't identify myself as a victim of noise or pollution, and I don't have allergies, so I am not bothered by gas-powered leaf blowers ("Raking in the noisemakers," Page A1, Sept. 17). In fact, I live across from a huge public playground in Newton, and the landscapers use all kinds of noisy equipment at all times of the day and on weekends. They work quickly and leave.

On the other hand, the kids' soccer teams create so much noise all day long on weekends starting early in the morning, and this commotion lasts throughout the weekend afternoons. The traffic congestion created by the games is dangerous, and spectators leave bottles and other debris on the field instead of in the green trash cans.

Banning gas leaf blowers is a nonissue when we have real fiscal and infrastructure issues in Newton that require serious attention.

BRENDA LOEW
Newton Upper Falls

LET ME get this straight: We ought to allow landscaping companies to use leaf blowers willy-nilly in our neighborhoods, sending plumes of dust and exhaust and disturbing the peace, so that the people who are too busy being lawyers and hedge fund speculators can pay less to have their spacious lots manicured? This seems an obvious place where an alderman ought to use his power to do right by the people.

JEAN DUNOYER
Watertown

PROBLEM: LEAF blowers are noisy machines that use two-stroke, pollution-heavy gasoline engines. Consider the juxtaposition of having trees and burning fossil fuel to tidy up after them.

Solution: Get some neighborhood kids out from behind their PlayStations, give them a couple of rakes, and let them learn how to make an honest buck. They may even benefit from a bit of exercise.

HUGH McGOWAN
Somerville