If you think mowing the lawn is a healthy weekend task, be warned: you could be sucking in a concoction of cancerous chemicals.
A Swedish-based scientist has found that a petrol-driven mower pumps out the same amount of carcinogens in one hour as an average car does indriving 150km.
Stockholm University analytical chemist Dr Roger Westerholm, who has reported his findings in New Scientist magazine, is calling for motor-mowers to be fitted with pollution-controlling catalytic converters.
These devices are required on cars in Europe, the United States, Australia and Japan, but not in New Zealand.
But the Auckland Regional Council says there are far more pressing air-pollution issues than catalytic converters on lawnmowers.
Dr Westerholm found that fumes from a typical Swedish lawnmower contained known carcinogens, including one found in tobacco smoke.
Catalytic converters cut these emissions by more than 90 per cent, he said. They should be fitted to chainsaws and other petrol-driven tools as well as lawnmowers.
The regional council's air quality manager, Kevin Mahon, said yesterday: "I don't think we would want to move towards regulating sources like that at the moment.
"There are much bigger fish to fry [such as reducing traffic congestion and emissions from poorly maintained vehicles]."
John Lawson, chief executive of Masport, which makes about half of the 50,000 lawnmowers sold in New Zealand a year, said the United States produced most motor-mower engines. They were becoming cleaner, to meet progressively tighter emissions controls.
In Britain, more than 70 per cent of new lawnmowers sold are electric, but in New Zealand, where homeowners' lawns are bigger, the market is still dominated by motor-mowers.
Mr Mahon said that although there were a lot of motor-mowers in New Zealand, they were not used nearly as much as motor vehicles, and were therefore responsible for much less pollution.
Dust masks offered no protection to gardeners mowing their lawns, he said.
Respirators would, but they were uncomfortable - "your face gets cooked ... after half an hour."
