introduction to the issue of the use of artificial turf.

it has come to my attention that some people don't know what field turf is..so i will describe it. it is a product that is made of ground up tires that are processed to resemble grass. it is used to create 'maintenance free' playing fields for parks and schools. the selling point is that it requires little or no maintenance- not entirely true unless you remove all the deciduous trees near the field- and very little/no water. the water issue is a tricky one. it is true that the fields will stay green forever, but they shed water, they don't hold onto water like a natural field will. so nearby streams and streets receive tons more runoff than they have ever received and they tend to flood. like san anselmo in 2005/6 which flooded after a series of heavy storms and the installation of artificial turf at drake high school. needless to say, the effects on streams and wildlife are incalculable. and the cost of the field turf is staggering. if we put that much money into academics and teachers' salaries, we would have some the best funded public schools in the country. instead, we have field turf. recently a public interest group filed suit against the makers of field turf claiming that the runoff contains high levels of lead and violates the clean drinking water act. prop 69. and the beat goes on.....on.....