Turfgrass footprints are easy to patch up. A carbon footprint - damage done to the atmosphere that results in global warming - isn't so simple.
UF and Florida State University officials have found a way to counteract the damaging emissions caused by the football game Saturday, a UF press release states.
The release says UF would be the first university in the nation to attempt the neutralization.
Along with the Florida Forestry Association and Environmental Defense, UF has arranged for about 18 acres of rural North Florida land to be managed as a pine plantation forest for 10 years.
The land is part of 100 acres set aside by Jim and Winston Bailey, two North Florida UF supporters. The rest might be used for future carbon offsetting projects.
Environmental Defense, an environmental protection group, will pay the Baileys to manage the trees.
Dedee DeLongpré-Johnston, director of UF's Office of Sustainability, will head the project.
DeLongpré-Johnston said in the release that with the expected attendance of 88,000 fans, Saturday's UF-FSU game would generate more than 1,750 metric tons of carbon dioxide.
Carbon dioxide comes from burning fossil fuels in power plants and vehicles, which is the main human contributor to global warming.
Trees take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen as part of their normal growth.
"The faster a tree grows, the more carbon dioxide it removes," stated Jeff Doran, executive vice president of the Florida Forestry Association, in the release. "Since Florida's climate provides optimal growing conditions, our forests can be very efficient scrubbers of greenhouse gases."
Eighteen acres of managed forest, which would fill about 14 football fields, would almost absorb the carbon released during the football game.
Sources of Saturday's expected carbon outflow include car emissions, lighting and operating the stadium and lodging for the traveling fans.
