South Suburban will be creating fewer emissions this summer, as employees on the Sustainability Committee secured funding to purchase electric lawn equipment from the Regional Air Quality Council’s Mow Down Pollution Public Entity Lawn & Garden Program. The funding will cover 80% of the costs to purchase electric trimmers and chainsaws and the batteries and chargers they require, which will replace gas-powered equipment currently used by the District’s maintenance crews.

“This award is not only a win for the parks maintenance crews and South Suburban in general, it is a win for our environment,” said Fleet Specialist Rahmon Hirad, who applied for the grant on behalf of South Suburban’s Sustainability Committee. “We are lessening our carbon footprint without hindering the quality of service provided by our parks staff, which is our goal.”

After learning about the grant, Hirad and fellow Sustainability Committee member Chris Mesch approached the District’s maintenance teams to gauge interest in the possibility of using electric equipment.

“Parks Maintenance crews were very interested in the chance to purchase electric equipment like weed trimmers and chainsaws at 20 percent of the cost,” said Hirad.

The Regional Air Quality Council launched the Mow Down Pollution exchange program to mitigate ground-level ozone and enhance air quality. The initiative’s Public Entity Lawn & Garden Grant offers local/state public entities, schools, universities, and parks and recreation special districts in the Denver Metro/North Front Range approximately $1,200,000 in vouchers to fund the purchase of zero-emission, commercial-grade, lawn and garden equipment. Grants also require entities to recycle an equal number of gas-powered equipment for the electric equipment they purchase, with the goal of improving air quality in Colorado.

The Mow Down Pollution initiative also has a residential program, which South Suburban residents are eligible to apply for.