Are There Any Health Risks with Synthetic Turf?
Articles that do mention any health risks outline those health risks of using synthetic turf made with nylon fibers. Nylon fibers are used in others countries such as China because there are no regulations. FutureTurf' synthetic turfs are Made in the USA and contain no nylon fibers. Our product also does not require the use of crumb rubber, as we prefer to use a sand-grain base; however, it is available upon the customers request.
There are No Health Risks Associated with Synthetic Turf
August 13, 2008
A string of news stories in the Washington Post, Boston Globe, MSNBC, and other outlets this spring highlighted "hazardous conditions" associated with synthetic turf products.
The closure of athletic fields in New Jersey and Connecticut due to "excessive levels" of lead chromate in the synthetic turf resulted in residents and officials taking a closer look at the turf on which children play sports, specifically crumb rubber turf made from recycled tires.
In Massachusetts, public health officials, facilities directors, and athletic directors are interested in learning more about health hazards associated with synthetic turf, particularly those associated with lead exposure.
Crumb rubber turf contains trace amounts of lead chromate and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (or PAHs, the major carcinogens in cigarette smoke), which have caused cancer and organ damage in animal tests.
In response to the New Jersey discoveries, New York City released a report that analyzed the lead hazard risks of four synthetic turf playing fields. Two fields were similar in age and type, and purchased from the same manufacturer, as a field in Newark, N.J. Two fields containing crumb rubber were also tested for lead. The report concluded that no regulatory limits for lead hazards were exceeded in any of the four fields.
An April report from the Synthetic Turf Council concluded: "There is no scientific evidence of a health risk for children or adults based on recent test results and current knowledge of chemical structure of aged synthetic turf products...Reports of health concerns have not been supported by any laboratory analysis on the products or humans that indicate any risk of harm due to potential exposure to chemicals."
In the July issue of SportsField Management, Steve Trusty reports on a recent press conference held by AstroTurf and General Sports Venue, where a number of doctors and scientists identified seven conclusions:
• The Centers for Disease Control Lead Prevention Program identifies no risk from synthetic turf.
• Lead does not leach from synthetic turf.
• Bioavailability of lead from pigment is extremely low.
• Dust at the Newark field posed no inhalation hazard for lead.
• Children with regular exposure to the Newark field tested normal for lead.
• Factory workers exposed to nylon turf and particles for 30 years tested normal for lead.
• The amount of ingested turf required to pose a threat is absurdly unrealistic.
A 50-pound child would have to eat 71.1 square feet of turf to get a 600-part-per-million dose, the federal limit, according to the doctors and scientists at the press conference. This would amount to about half of the child's weight.
Lead chromate, found in synthetic turf, differs from lead carbonate (soluble lead found in lead paint). At a Consumer Products Safety Commission roundtable, Rick Doyle, president of the Synthetic Turf Council, reported that "lead chromate is almost completely insoluble, silica coated, encapsulated in resin, diluted, and has extremely low bioavailability. It is not absorbed by the body if ingested or inhaled."
Doyle also presented data from the CDC Lead Prevention Program, which indicates that of 763,000 childhood lead exposures between 1997 and 2006, none were attributed to exposure to synthetic turf.
It is not known, however, what contribution heat, sun exposure, wind speed, moisture, and other variables have on the level of health risk. The seemingly infinite variation of conditions would prevent reliable or valid health risk results.
"Everyone is in agreement that there is some level of exposure of athletes to the chemicals that are 'out-gassed' from the rubber crumbs," says Barbara Fullerton, a professor of otology at Harvard Medical School. "What is not known is the amount of exposure with different conditions on the field, such as the amount of sun exposure, level of sun in the sky, wind speed, moisture in the turf, to mention a few of the physical variables."
More study is needed to fully understand the risk of lead chromate in turf products. One conclusion that can be made with confidence, however, is that children have a far greater chance, statistically, of succumbing to heat-related illnesses than lead exposure, as synthetic turf tends to "run hot", which means that the surface temperatures can become quite high with sun and heat exposure.
The Synthetic Turf Council is working with the Consumer Products Safety Commission to develop reasonable standards and phase-in periods for lead chromate in synthetic turf. The STC is also working with the CPSC to develop clear and objective terminology to describe acceptable or undetectable levels of lead chromate in synthetic turf (similar to those used to describe lead-free gasoline).
Synthetic turf is not just for college and professional sports anymore. More operators of public facilities and high school stadiums are exploring the costs and benefits of synthetic turf. Whether long-term cost savings exist remains to be seen, but all sports field managers should certainly become aware of all factors, including health risks and liability exposures, when choosing a turf product.
MIIA will soon publish a guide, "Protecting Your Turf: Managing Risks Associated with Synthetic Fields," to help communities and public schools in developing, operating, and managing synthetic turf fields. Incorporating field management into the overall municipal risk management plan can help communities efficiently handle costs associated with turf.
Written by MIIA Member Services Loss Control Manager Bob Marinelli
