Lead Found in Artificial Turf at 2 Texas Stadiums

From: Nancy Alderman
Date: December 18, 2008 8:49:34 AM PST
To: Recipient List Suppressed:;
Subject: Lead found in artificial turf at 2 Texas stadiums


http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D954LI6O0.html

Lead found in artificial turf at 2 Texas stadiums

"...... testing at the Birdville stadium also found about twice the EPA limit for lead in drinking water in the runoff from the field, an indication that the lead is being released into the environment."

THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS 12/17/2008
By DANNY ROBBINS / Associated Press

Some of the most hallowed ground in Texas - the artificial turf on its high school football fields - may also be toxic.

Fields in two of the state's best-known high school stadiums, including the one made famous by the book and movie "Friday Night Lights," have lead levels far exceeding the Environmental Protection Agency's standard for soil, according to independent tests done within the last month.

The results, obtained by The Associated Press, are the first public indication that Texas' prized high school stadiums have become part of the national controversy over whether artificial turf contains unsafe levels of lead.

Testing commissioned by the Ector County school district on the turf at Odessa's Ratliff Stadium found lead at roughly 14 times the EPA standard. Similar testing by the Birdville school district in the Fort Worth suburb of North Richland Hills discovered a lead level nearly 10 times the EPA standard at that district's stadium, the Fine Arts/Athletics Complex.

Ratliff Stadium, which has a capacity of 19,500, has become part of Texas football lore and national popular culture as the home of the Permian Panthers, winners of six state championships and the team profiled in "Friday Night Lights." The Birdville stadium is also well known in the state, with a seating capacity of 12,000.

Both stadiums have the same brand of turf, a product called AstroPlay. The high lead levels were found in a secondary layer of nylon fiber at the base of the fields called the "root zone."

Neither test found significant lead levels in the uppermost fibers, the portion of the field that athletes are in contact with most often. However, testing at the Birdville stadium also found about twice the EPA limit for lead in drinking water in the runoff from the field, an indication that the lead is being released into the environment.

"Our opinion is that AstroPlay turf could pose a human health risk," wrote Michael T. Abel, project manager at the Lubbock lab that conducted the test.
Quentin Burnett, an associate superintendent in the Birdville school district, said he and other officials are now attempting to learn whether the turf, installed five years ago, can still be safely used.

"We don't have the $300,000 or $400,000 it would take to replace it any more than anybody else does," he said. "But we're not going to have something that's unsafe for our students."

David Finley, the Ector County school district's director of facilities and maintenance, said the district sees no immediate cause for concern. For the time being, he said, it will continue monitoring the field, also five years old.

Elsewhere in the country, school officials have closed facilities that showed lead levels far lower than those measured at the two Texas stadiums.

The Beverly Hills, Calif., school district recently closed an elementary school playground with AstroPlay after discovering that the lead in its "root zone" was more than twice the EPA standard. The playground has been removed as hazardous waste and will be replaced, said Jim Fahey, director of maintenance and operations for the district.

"How do you explain to a parent that it's OK to play in these conditions?" he said, describing the school district's position. "We didn't want to have to explain ourselves or be second-guessed on this."

The lead in artificial turf comes from lead chromate, which until recently was widely used in the pigment that colors the nylon or polyethylene fibers.

Artificial turf manufacturers say the danger is overblown because the lead is largely contained in the fibers. But critics contend that the fields present a risk as they degrade due to use and sunlight.

The topic has generated controversy since two fields in New Jersey were closed in April after testing by state health officials found lead levels eight to 10 times the EPA soil standard.

Those fields were the carpet style of AstroTurf, which has been out of favor for years. But more recent testing in other states has shown high lead levels in the latest generation of turf, which mimics real grass by using longer fibers and rubber or sand "infill."

AstroPlay was the major "infill" product manufactured by Southwest Recreational Industries Inc., a Leander, Texas, company that went out of business in 2004. The company patented the "root zone" and marketed it as a unique feature for stabilizing the rubber granules.

"No field is exempt until you get reliable data to indicate whether there is high lead concentration in the product," said Glenn Pulliam, a New Jersey health official who was involved in analyzing the state's test data.

More than 200 of Texas' 1,154 high school stadiums have artificial turf, according to Bob McSpadden, who has a Web site devoted to the state's stadiums.

Despite the publicity generated by the New Jersey tests, the Ector County and Birdville school districts were the only districts among more than a dozen in Texas contacted by the AP that had tested their fields.

"We're not burying our head in the sand," said Joe Loerwald, athletic director for the Round Rock school district outside Austin, which has an AstroPlay field. "But, at the same time, we don't see it as a prevalent problem."

The fact that so few of the state's school districts have tested their turf for lead is worrisome, said Winifred Hamilton, director of environmental health at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

"It seems to me that we've jumped into something without properly understanding it," she said.
___
On the Web:
http://www.texasbob.com/stadium/

--
Nancy Alderman, President
Environment and Human Health, Inc.
1191 Ridge Road
North Haven, CT 06473
(phone) 203-248-6582
(fax) 203-288-7571
http://www.ehhi.org

Dr. Philip Landrigan speaks of Artificial Turf Health Hazards

Begin forwarded message:

From: Nancy Alderman
Date: December 13, 2008 7:29:30 AM PST
To: Recipient List Suppressed:;
Subject: Dr. Philip Landrigan speaks of Artificial Turf health hazards

http://www.lohud.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008812110386

The Journal News
The Journal News, is a Gannett Company newspaper serving Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties in New York.

Letter to the Editor * December 11, 2008

Artificial turf fields pose safety issues
Philip J. Landrigan, MD, MSc, Professor of Pediatrics

I urge the Irvington school district not to adopt the use of artificial turf until further examination.

There are several hundred artificial turf fields on the East Coast. Towns and school districts installed them to improve the quality of playing fields and accommodate sports programs. However, they were pursued without analysis of potential negative consequences. A number of these very expensive fields have been installed and we are suddenly, and belatedly, beginning to realize they may lead to health problems, such as:

1. Extreme heat. On hot summer days, temperatures of over 130 degrees Fahrenheit have been recorded a few feet above the surface of synthetic turf fields - the altitude where children play. Vigorous play in these conditions conveys a very real risk of heat stress or heat stroke.

2. MRSA skin infections. Outbreaks of skin infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus have been documented in children who play on synthetic turf fields (New England Journal of Medicine, February 2005).

3. Chemical hazards to human health and the environment. Crumb rubber, a major component of current generation synthetic turf fields, is typically made from ground-up recycled tires containing styrene and 1, 3-butadiene, the major constituents of synthetic rubber. Styrene is toxic to the nervous system, and butadiene is a proven human carcinogen.

Lead was recently found in synthetic turf fields in New Jersey at levels so high that several fields were closed by the state Health Department. Citizens and school boards should question the wisdom of installing synthetic turf until a credible independent study has been conducted and published.

Philip J. Landrigan, MD, MSc
Professor and Chairman, Department of Community & Preventive Medicine
Professor of Pediatrics
Director, Children's Environmental Health Center
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
17 East 102nd Street, Room D3-145
New York, NY 10029-6574
Tel: 212-824-7018

The writer is professor of pediatrics and director of the Children's Environmental Health Center at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City.

--
Nancy Alderman, President
Environment and Human Health, Inc.
1191 Ridge Road
North Haven, CT 06473
(phone) 203-248-6582
(fax) 203-288-7571
http://www.ehhi.org

Used Tires and Kentucky

Begin forwarded message:

From: Nancy Alderman
Date: December 13, 2008 5:05:50 AM PST
To: Recipient List Suppressed:;
Subject: Used tires and Kentucky


The article below shows how the state of Kentucky promotes various uses of their used rubber tires - mainly in places where children play. First Kentucky collects a dollar from every new tire sold - and then they give out the money that they collected from new tire sales as grants to be used ONLY for ground up used tire uses. This is a truly horrible practice that Kentucky is engaging in.

The federal government, under EPA, is responsible for the disposal practices of used tires. The states are also responsible for disposal practices of used tires. Used tires have always been a problem for both the federal government and for states. So Kentucky has solved their used tire problem by pushing them on children.

Thank goodness Connecticut does not do any such thing. Read below for what Kentucky does.

Best Nancy

http://www.kypost.com/default.aspx
The KENTUCKY POST December 11, 2008
State Accepts Grant Proposals

The Energy and Environment Cabinet is accepting grant proposals for projects that promote the use of recycled waste tires for athletic fields, playgrounds, and other crumb rubber or mulch applications.

To a limited degree, the cabinet will consider funding research and development proposals for experimental practices or technologies.

For this grant program year, total funding available for all projects is limited to $200,000.
Applications must be received by close of business Feb. 16, at the cabinet's Division of Waste Management central office in Frankfort.

The application and any supporting documentation must be submitted in order for the application to be complete.

For more information, contact Lisa Evans at (502) 564-6716, Lisa.Evans@ky.gov.

Information is also online at the division's Web site - http://www.waste.ky.gov
Grant funding comes from the Waste Tire Trust Fund, a grant program established in 1998 by the Kentucky General Assembly to receive fees collected from new tire sales.
Kentucky Post
--

--
Nancy Alderman, President
Environment and Human Health, Inc.
1191 Ridge Road
North Haven, CT 06473
(phone) 203-248-6582
(fax) 203-288-7571
http://www.ehhi.org

Charlie Rose Interview on BioDiversity

http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/9747

i have recently received several letters from people who appear to be the makers
and or sellers of field turf.

i want to address a couple of their statements.

the first one: the statement made by field turf proponents that the installation of field turf reduces the use of pesticides. while that may be true IF pesticides are used on playing fields, in marin county and san francisco county they are not. pesticide use on school playing fields has been banned in those counties and many others also. so the pesticide issue is bogus.

2. the issue of watering the fields. this has some merit.
fake fields don't use any water. they don't hold any water either and therefore
increase the runoff from the fake fields into neighboring creeks, streams, culverts and city streets. that run-off water is running off of ground up tires that have been treated with numerous chemicals and running into those creeks carrying those very chemicals. the issue of overwatering also comes to mind. i can recall many times walking past school fields that are
being watered IN THE RAIN! all the sprinklers on full blast in the rain! and i can remember times when the sprinklers were on all weekend. that is a hardware/software issue. a well managed playing field can get by on 2 good soakings a month. furthermore, water sensors are available that will actually measure the moisture in the ground and control the amount of water that is used. much cheaper than astro turf. And natural playing fields provide employment for people.

3. the injury question. are they worse on field turf or better? the subtext of this question is ..injuries are inevitable in high school sports. some doctors have cited field turf as a possible culprit in the spread of msra-the anti-biotic resistant bacteria that is spreading like crazy in hospitals, schools, gyms, etc.

and here is one more issue- you won't like this one either. how about having
schools be about education! just education. and moving sports into a recreational arena so to speak. the students who are interested in sports could do all the track and high jump and soccer and football and basketball they want- after school in appropriate facilities paid for by the athletes. then schools could just be schools and athletes could be athletes. it seems to me that the sports budgets are bankrupting school districts and placing unnecessary parcel tax burdens on homeowners.

ok... i have more, but it will keep till another day.

Field Turf looking to have synthetic turf considered "Green"

From: Nancy Alderman
Date: December 2, 2008 12:05:12 PM PST
To: Recipient List Suppressed:;
Subject: Field Turf looking to have their synthetic turf considered "Green".

Usually Environment and Human Health, Inc. (EHHI) sends out articles or studies that deal with environmental issues that affect health and includes no comments in those e-mails. The purpose of our e-mails is simply to increase all of our information about issues affecting our health. However - the article below from Field Turf calls for more.

Field Turf, based in Canada, is one of the major manufacturers of synthetic turf with ground-up rubber tire infill. These fields consist of a plastic - like material that is dyed green to look like grass - and then the blades of plastic are filled in with used ground-up rubber tire pellets the size of bread crumbs. The end result is that there are yards and yards of dyed green plastic with literally tons of used rubber tires ground up and sprinkled loose over the green plastic synthetic field. Field Turf is now saying it will help these plastic fields to get "Leed" certification.

Leed certification indicates that your building is a "green" building. That means, in part, that it is designed and constructed to promote profitability while reducing the negative environmental impacts of buildings and improving occupant health and well-being. You can learn more about Leed Certification at http://www.nrdc.org/buildinggreen/leed.asp

If all that plastic and all those old used tires sprinkled over acres of land lead to a better environment -- and improve occupant health and well-being - then the world is definitely up-side down. This is yet one more example of industry - with its clever marketing strategies - taking over well meaning and hard fought for environmental progress and turning it inside out for its own uses.

Can you imagine all that plastic and all those old used rubber tires now being considered "Green"? Below is the paragraph from the Field Turf press release found on the Athletic Turf website. Click the blue type if you want their whole article.

"FieldTurf helps organizations earn the necessary points needed for U.S. Green Building Council LEED certification. FieldTurf's reused rubber content and water use reduction, among other factors, can contribute numerous points towards LEED certification. FieldTurf is also a proud member of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Greenscapes program that aims towards providing cost-efficient and environmentally friendly solutions for landscaping."

http://www.athleticturf.net/athleticturf/Artificial+Turf/FieldTurf-trumpets-its-environmental-benefits/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/568972?contextCategoryId=3209

Nancy Alderman, President
Environment and Human Health, Inc.
1191 Ridge Road
North Haven, CT 06473
(phone) 203-248-6582
(fax) 203-288-7571
http://www.ehhi.org