Ontario Bans Bans on Clotheslines
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 01.23.08
It is a scandal. For 50 years the Government of Ontario promoted planning policies that encouraged the building of neat and tidy subdivisions with tight restrictive covenants that prevent all kinds of things that might be ugly, like wind turbines and solar collectors. Now, it's the thin edge of the wedge as they bring in legislation that abolishes restrictions on clotheslines for anyone who lives in a freehold detached, semi-detached or row house.
"We have a clothesline -- both at our home and at our cottage,'' [environment minister Gerry] Phillips said. "My neighbour has her clothes out all winter long . . . . Most homes right now can put up a clothesline and it's worked pretty well.''
Clothes dryers use about 900 kilowatt hours of electricity a year on average, or about six per cent of residential electricity consumption. By hanging one-quarter of their laundry loads out to dry, Phillips said consumers could save about $30 a year on their electricity bills while helping to reduce greenhouse gases.
"It's a no-brainer,'' he said. "It's a really good idea.'' ::Guelph Mercury
Next thing you know people will be allowed to rip up their driveways or put photovoltaics on their roof or build wind farms that I can see from my cottage dock. What is the world coming to?
See also Do Clotheslines Really Lower Property Value? , Get Ready for National Hanging Out Day and ::Fight For Your Right... to Dry
I wonder how this might conflict with condo bylaws?
My townhouse complex has as ban on clotheslines but not only do I think it's stupid, at the last meeting they asked for ideas on how they could reduce energy usage. Irony!
I would love to have some legislative clout behind me before I suggest it. Some residents would prefer the bland to the green.
I completely agree with this comment. I, too, live in a "condo" townhouse (not freehold, but subject to rules set by the property management company that "owns" it) and wish we were allowed to run clotheslines. When I was in Italy, I loved the look of all the clothes lines hanging between the houses in Venice, so beautiful and colourful. I have a fold-out clothing rack that I am allowed to use (as long as it is not visible above the railing of my balcony), but it is very small and I only end up using it for delicate clothes that can't go in the dryer. I wish that people would realize that drying clothes don't really bring property values down; God forgive we actually let our neighbourhoods look lived in!
This is not final yet, from what I read on the Ministry of Energy's website. You should probably read the notice. I hope to see this enacted by the spring.
I've mentioned this before. I have a friend living just outside Scottsdale in AZ and he is NOT ALLOWED to hang his washing out on his large plot - which almost forces him to use his dryer. It is a crazy situation that needs nationwide guidelines to encourage natural air drying.
I was born and raised in Arizona and lived in Scottsdale , and on it's border for about 12 years , an dthere is No Legistlation against clothes lines ! It is encouraged by utility companies at peak usage times , and summer . They must be living near a resort or some plush tourist zone , or under the authority of a neighborhood assn . The same people want to complain if your car is not new enough , or is not parked in your garage overnight . If you choose to live in a controled envirornment , you had better read the fine print . We should start importing progressive Swedish law makers to America , let's wake up America !