Climate change is one of the largest threats facing the planet. A new United Nations report says climate change is widespread, rapid and intensifying. Human behavior has a direct impact on the warming planet. One remedy is to cut carbon emissions.

Syracuse University is on track to reach its carbon neutral goals by 2040. It’s a two-pronged approach to reduce pollution and offset emissions.

What You Need To Know

  • Syracuse University is on track to be carbon neutral by 2040

  • The school invested in an electric lawn mower which reduces carbon emissions by about 1,400 pounds a year

  • The mower is used about 20 hours a week and uses four batteries

Recently, the grounds crew added an electric lawn mower to its fleet. It looks like a gas mower and operates the same way, but there are four rechargeable batteries in the back, so it does not emit carbon pollutants.

“There’s no oil. There’s no belts,” said Pat Carroll, the university’s grounds manager. “There’s no emissions at all, so that’s a big thing for us, working through sustainability to try to find the mower that would actually work for us and do the work that we needed to have done, and this one does it for us.”

A small purchase makes more of a dent on the university’s grounds, because cutting grass on campus is a full-time job. The mower is used at least 20 hours per week.

“We are reducing our carbon footprint by 1,400 pounds, so we are giving it a little bit cleaner atmosphere, but also we are promoting the idea that we are reducing our carbon footprint for the greater good,” said Meg Lowe, SU’s sustainability coordinator. “This is one small step.”

Another byproduct of going electric is the machine is a lot quieter than a gas mower. The electric mower is about 75 decibels, which is the same as a vacuum cleaner or a loud radio. The gas mower is about four times louder and above dangerous levels.

The university is investing in renewable energy, as well. The renovated Schine Student Center has lots of green touches, including solar panels.