A new plan called “Leading the Charge” was recently unveiled by New York City Mayor Eric Adams. It is a four billion dollar project being launched to fight climate change, reduce air pollution, and improve overall learning environments for students.

The initiative, according to nyc.gov, will stop schools from using highly polluting heating oils by making future school buildings all-electric. By 2026, 800 schools in NYC will have more energy-efficient LED lights installed and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and 100 existing schools will be switching to all-electric heating by 2030.

Ultra-low emissions biofuel will be implemented and utilized in more than 200 schools. The move to cleaner-burning biofuel is intended to improve local air quality right away by reducing 99 percent of onsite combustion of disease-causing particulates.

“Leading the Charge” was initially launched at P.S 5 Dr. Ronald McNair Elementary School in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. 

Mayor Adams stated, “In ‘Leading the Charge,’ we are making a four billion dollar investment in the health, education, and prosperity of our young people.” 

“I think it will benefit the school community because it will make it easier for students to learn with fresher air and not get sick,” said WJPS eighth grader Rachel Farmer.

Another eighth grader, Emma Bolaños stated, “I think this plan will have a benefit if it is pushed more to help the community. So the air will be fresher and less polluted.”

“greenhouse gas” by Sky Noir is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.