Welcome to Sw.eLL (Swarthmore Electric Lawns) - aFewSteps.org Initiative

​Let's Bring Electric Powered Lawn Care to Swarthmore

If you are tired of ​
  • The overwhelming noise 
  • The toxic exhaust fumes  
  • The carbon footprint ​
​from all the gas-powered commercial blowers and mowers in our town, consider funding our community project.

Fund Sw.eLL!

  • Provide a small loan (not a donation)
  • Support a local lawn businesses make the transition from gas to electric 
  • Make Swarthmore quieter, cleaner, greener

​Just how good are electric-powered mowers compared to gas-powered mowers:

Reduce
Human Conversation
Electric Mower
Gas Mower
Motorcycle
NOISE
60 db
65-75 db
85-95 db
95 db
It's the difference between having a motorcycle rather than a washing machine next to you. Hearing damage can occur with sustained exposure at 80 db.
Eliminate
Emissions from 1 Hour of Electric Mowing
Emissions from 1 Hour of Gas Mowing
NOXIOUS VOCs
Zero
11 hours of driving a gas-powered car
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as Nitrous Oxide and Carbon Monoxide  
are particularly bad during summer when emissions cook in the sunlight and high temperatures to form ground level ozone.
Eliminate
Emissions from 1 Hour of Electric Mowing
Emissions from 1 Hour of Gas Mowing
CO2 Emissions 
Zero
100 miles of driving a gas-powered car
An estimated 17 Million gallons of gas are spilled every year with refilling and use of gas lawn equipment
More than the Exxon-Valdez spill!
Sw.eLL's Purpose & Approach 

Our Purpose 
Sw.eLL (Swarthmore Electric Lawns) is an aFewSteps initiative whose mission is to help our local lawn care business owners make the transition from gas to battery powered technology  

We aim to solve the critical financial issues that make transitioning from existing equipment to new cleaner equipment: 
  1. The high cost for a small business to buy new equipment 
  2. The difficulty and expense of obtaining a loan for new equipment 
  3. Current debt for existing equipment

Our approach 
We are offering a community centered solution to help a local lawn care business buy new, battery powered equipment.
  1. Community members contribute small loans ($150-300) which are returned to when the lawn company pays back the loan.
  2. Sw.eLL pools these smaller contributions - our goal is $30,000 - and loan it at 0% to a local lawn care company to purchase electric lawn equipment. This loan is secured by the equipment.  
  3. We help create a proof-point for the lawn care providers in the region of the viability of electric lawn equipment and create more supply of cleaner services.
  4. We create more demand from residents for more availability and use of electric lawn equipment as they see, hear, and compare the clean new battery powered equipment with traditional gas equipment.  
​
Together we can be the catalysts for a change for the better in Swarthmore. Join us today and help fund this effort generously: 

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