NEL to Begin Transition to Electric in 2024!

After many years of watching commercial grade electric landscape equipment evolve, in 2024 we are excited to begin adopting it and replacing gas powered equipment with cleaner, quieter and greener electric battery power alternatives. Our plan is broken into three phases …

Phase 1. Replacement of our gas powered leaf blowers.

Phase 2. Replacement of weed trimmers.

Phase 3. Replacement of lawn mowers.  

While it may be a little while before we can fully operationalize our conversion to electric mowers, we have already committed in the form of a partnership with Scythe Robotics, a company leading the way when it comes to commercial grade, larger scale, electric autonomous mowing technology. (And headquartered right here in Boulder County!). We have secured a spot on their deployment waitlist.

Why is it taking so long to just flip the switch and go electric? We have been researching and keeping up to date regarding the evolution of commercial electric equipment for many years and as a result, have gained a thorough understanding of the various benefits and challenges involved.  Over the past few years the commercial grade technology has been evolving and changing rapidly for the better. The biggest factor… battery technology. As battery technology evolves and becomes more efficient, battery performance/run time improves, recharge time decreases, and the amount of weight needing to be carried on the backs of landscape technicians decreases.

Other factors needing consideration have included the upgrade requirements to our electrical infrastructure (both mobile and at our facility), the expected life cycle of the batteries, and also the ability to recycle batteries when their life cycle ends.

One final factor we must be be prepared for is the enhanced risk and cost of equipment theft. Landscape equipment is targeted by thieves quite frequently and battery equipment such as leaf blowers can be 3-4x as expensive as traditional gas blowers… making them even more attractive to those looking for that 5 finger discount.

And at the end of the day, we must factor in and be sensitive to any additional costs that may end up being passed on to our customers – single family homeowners, HOA and assisted living communities, property managers and others. Are our customers willing or able to pay for quieter and cleaner technology in more in what is already a highly inflationary environment?   Perhaps some, but not all.

All of these factors have contributed to our conversation over the past several years of “when will we go electric?”. As one of the largest landscape service providers in the Boulder County area committed to sustainable business practices, when it comes to replacing traditional gas powered equipment with electric, our goal is to be an “early adopter” (in an industry in which companies historically do not have extra money laying around to experiment with – challenges such as seasonality, weather and labor supply issues primarily). 

How does Native Edge Landscapes currently incorporate sustainable practices into their business model?

We are committed to being a good partner with our community, and take pride in our commitment to sustainability and incorporating sustainable practices like…

• Organic Plant and Lawn Care. Our biological approach builds healthy soils, supports pollinators, reduces watering requirements, and keeps people, kids and pets safe from potentially harmful chemicals.
• Water Conservation.  We are 100% committed to helping our community conserve water through xeric design-build practices and SMART irrigation management.
• Local Service Model: We practice what we like to call a “hyper-local” model.  Unlike many other full service landscape outfits out there, we focus on a keeping operations local. This means we keep our driving distances short which helps to minimize our carbon footprint. 
• Sustainable Landscape Management Certified. We are not only certified through the Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado, we are helping other individuals and Company’s attain their certifications every time we volunteer to teach a SLM Certification class. And it is our goal to partner with as many communities as we can to help them become Certified Sustainable Landscape Communities through the Sustainable Landscape Communities Initiative
• Recycling, Re-use and Compost. We have a robust recycling, re-use and compost program.  From our offices to our job sites, we minimize what goes to the landfill.  Our re-use and recycling efforts go well beyond office paper and drink containers. We separate and process discarded landscape materials like concrete, soils, stone, that would otherwise go to the landfill.  
• Electric Battery Powered Equipment. We are excited to begin our conversion to clean electric in 2024!