During a recent Board of Supervisors meeting, the discussion about banning gas-powered leaf blowers in Santa Clara County shifted to worries over immigration enforcement. Supervisor Sylvia Arenas expressed concerns that such a ban might encourage residents to report undocumented workers to authorities. Board President Otto Lee acknowledged these worries, emphasizing that the intent was not to initiate any enforcement actions against workers. The conversation reflects broader attempts across California to address environmental impacts from leaf blowers, especially with new regulations set to ban their sales from 2024 onward.
"I just don't want it to be a reason why residents (report) immigrants that are doing their job... either to get people in trouble with ICE or police," Arenas said.
"That's absolutely not the approach, especially with what you mentioned... That's the last thing our county should spend any resource on whatsoever. That's not my intent," Lee told Arenas.
"Cities across the Bay Area have grappled with regulating climate impacts and proliferation of noxious fumes... harming both residents and the workers operating them," the article stated.
"His policy would have also limited the use of electric leaf blowers to specific hours, based on community feedback," the article noted.
#santa-clara-county #gas-powered-leaf-blowers #immigration-concerns #environmental-policy #local-governance
Collection
[
|
...
]