We are Patti and Doug Wood, Founders and Directors of environmental health non-profit Grassroots Environmental Education. We’re encouraging communities to ban synthetic turf for its dangerous properties. Ask us Anything!

We are Patti and Doug Wood, Founders and Directors of environmental health non-profit Grassroots Environmental Education, and hosts of the weekly podcast Green Street News.

We are advocating for protective legislation on local, state, and national levels regulating the use of artificial turf.

Some great examples of this type of legislation have already come out of Westport, Connecticut, Boston, Massachusetts, and most recently there was legislation signed by Governor Gavin Newsom of California allowing municipalities the right to outlaw this turf.

Here are some basic considerations about synthetic turf:

• “Astro Turf” was introduced at the Houston Astrodome in 1965. Since then, tens of thousands of plastic turf fields have been installed in communities around the country.

• The benefits of synthetic turf, as touted by their manufacturers, include 24/7 use, all-weather play, a safer surface resulting in fewer injuries, and a maintenance-free field with no need for mowing, pesticides, fertilizers, etc. This sales pitch (however misleading and inaccurate) makes the allure totally understandable for schools and municipalities.

• The science on the components of synthetic turf fields presents a more sobering reality. A typical turf field is made from a plastic carpet and grass blades filled with crumb rubber from as many as 40,000 recycled tires. Tires are made from some very toxic chemicals, including the known carcinogens arsenic, benzene, carbon black (which makes up to 40% of a tire), 1,3 butadiene, TCE and cadmium, as well as known neurotoxins, lead and mercury. Crumb rubber dust and small pieces are easily inhaled or swallowed as they become disturbed during game play.

• Recent studies have shown that the plastic grass blades on turf fields contain PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) or “forever chemicals.” They are used to help the plastic material move more easily through the manufacturing process. PFAS exposure has been linked to cancer, liver damage, decreased fertility, asthma and thyroid disease. treated as hazardous waste. PFAS chemicals can also volatilize, especially on hot, sunny days, and the amount of PFAS that young athletes inhale has yet to be quantified. PFAS fromn synthetic turf can contaminate drinking water sources.
• Statistics show that non-contact injuries are actually more common on synthetic turf surfaces, especially those that are not constantly maintained for resiliency. The G-max rating – the ability to absorb impact – changes as the materials are compacted, often leaving an unsafe, harder surface that makes injuries more likely and more severe. Injuries cited include joint trauma (especially ankles and knees), “turf toe,” unusually large skin abrasions which are more prone to infection and concussions. These are some of the reasons that the majority of professional athletes prefer natural grass.

• There is also potential for body fluid contamination on a playing field during normal sports activities, including blood, saliva, sweat and vomit. Natural grass fields have the advantage of soil microbes to help break down pathogens, but plastic surfaces on synthetic turf need to be disinfected after games to ensure safety. However, in practice, this is rarely done, if ever, and the use of chemical disinfectants (pesticides) adds an additional concern for the health and safety of players.
• Then there are the heat issues. Studies at Brigham Young University showed that synthetic turf averaged 37 degrees hotter than asphalt and 86.5 degrees hotter that natural grass. On a hot, sunny day, synthetic fields can reach a temperature of 180-200 degrees. Serious heat-related illnesses and actual burns occurring on the soles of the feet of athletes have spurred turf manufacturers to sell water canons for cooling the fields, even though the water only reduces the temperature for about 20 minutes, at which time the process has to be repeated. Heat also increases the outgassing of volatile chemicals, which makes them more problematic as an inhalation exposure.
• Lastly, there are a growing number of reports of higher than usual cases of lymphoma and leukemia among athletes playing on synthetic turf, especially soccer goalies, who regularly dive onto the turf, releasing dust and infill particles. While to date no studies have been conducted to confirm a link, common sense tells us that chemicals in tires that are linked to serious health problems should be avoided.

• Synthetic turf is an unsustainable petroleum product, not biodegradable and unrecyclable. The fields are replacing natural grass fields which are living ecosystems, capable of sequestering carbon in their biomass, recharging and filtering rainwater and pollutants and cooling ambient temperatures.

Proof: https://shorturl.at/jAHL3

by GrassRootsInfo