Two major North Carolina hospital systems are taking steps to make sure their communities and patients breathe easier on their campuses, according to an article on the Public News Service website. 

Beginning in 2018, Carolinas HealthCare System and Novant Health will require any construction equipment on site to use the lowest exhaust-emitting machinery and promote anti-idling practices. 

The change came about after Clean Air Carolina reached out to hospital leadership to educate them about the impact some construction equipment can have on air quality, the article said. 

"We are constantly renovating and expanding and changing our facilities,” director of environmental sustainability solutions for the health system, Kady Cowan said. "The idea is to really start to look towards market transformation and making sure that the most clean-burning equipment is the equipment that is the most widely used and available across Charlotte."

Read the article.