Food trucks have grown in popularity because the budget-friendly meals on wheels offer variety and convenience that many sit-down restaurants simply cannot compete with, but this growing food trend comes at a cost to the environment.

New York City has addressed the environmental cost of food trucks by encouraging the city’s vendors to go solar. The city has launched an initiative to get 500 energy-efficient carts out on city streets by next summer. The pilot program will give food truck vendors the opportunity to lease the carts for five years at little to no extra cost. These carts will reduce emissions by implementing hybrid natural gas systems, along with solar energy.

According to an analysis performed by Energy Vision, a clean-energy research firm, each cart is projected to cut greenhouse gas pollution by 60 percent, potentially slashing the levels of smog-causing nitrous oxide by about 95 percent.

For more information, visit EnvironmentAmerica.org.