This could get very interesting down the road

[retro44]

and with 11,000 turf fields it could cost billions to remedy.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/investigations/how-safe-artificial-turf-your-child-plays-n220166

 

[PhatOrange]

very interesting and no surprise at all. if the rubber pellets are made from pulverized tires then of course they're toxic. in another 20 years we'll be ripping up the fields in hazmats suits. the new asbestos.

 

[rrlbees]

Many if not most high schools around here have gotten rid of that stuff and gone to field turf which doesn't have those pellets. Some of the indoor facilities still have them though.

 

[oldpinepoint]

I played on astoturf in college. It was miserable

 

[OrangeFoo]

Many if not most high schools around here have gotten rid of that stuff and gone to field turf which doesn't have those pellets. Some of the indoor facilities still have them though.

Love that the EPA doesnt think they should investigate... what are we paying them to do again?

 

[HeaterCuse22]

Love that the EPA doesnt think they should investigate... what are we paying them to do again?

Easy they measure polar ice - but only report on ice loss.

 

[Pyle]

Many if not most high schools around here have gotten rid of that stuff and gone to field turf which doesn't have those pellets. Some of the indoor facilities still have them though.

Can you elaborate? Field Turf as far as I know is the stuff with the pellets. We have astro turf, then field turf. Am I missing something? I can tell you without a doubt, that during the spring game when they let people on the field, my kids play football and there are black pellets all over in their shoes when they get home.

 

[upperdeck]

interesting how many studies have been done saying there is no cause for concern and now one is completely the opposite. some pellets are made of tire rubber some are made of more synthetic stuff.

 

[rrlbees]

Can you elaborate? Field Turf as far as I know is the stuff with the pellets. We have astro turf, then field turf. Am I missing something? I can tell you without a doubt, that during the spring game when they let people on the field, my kids play football and there are black pellets all over in their shoes when they get home.

I probably have the terms wrong, but the new stuff doesn't hVe those pellets or they are more compacted. I know all about those pellets and the kids bringing them home in shoes, on clothes, and getting them all over. That doesn't happen anymore since some schools got the new stuff. Haven't seen a pebble in a few years.

 

[Pyle]

I probably have the terms wrong, but the new stuff doesn't hVe those pellets or they are more compacted. I know all about those pellets and the kids bringing them home in shoes, on clothes, and getting them all over. That doesn't happen anymore since some schools got the new stuff. Haven't seen a pebble in a few years.

Cool, thx for the explanation.

 

[AZOrange]

I played on astoturf in college. It was miserable

whenever I played on it I always felt awkward and clumsy and it seemed hollow. Prob just me

 

[rrlbees]

Cool, thx for the explanation.

Well I have to modify what I said. I talked to my son who plays on this stuff all the time. He said the new stuff does have the pebbles. But he said there aren't as many, the grass is a lot longer so the pebble's are more buried, and they just don't get in your shoes or clothes anymore. So yea, they're still there but new technology keeps them from being all over.

 

[jekelish]

I've never understood the appeal of playing on FieldTurf of any other synthetic turf, but all of the football players at my school down here in Texas desperately want our grass field replaced with the stuff. I spoke to my AD a couple weeks ago and he's pretty sure that by 2020 we will in all likelihood do it, as they've already gotten estimates (apparently about $1.3 million). But yeah, as bees said the new, more revolutionary stuff, doesn't have many pellets...it's an actual, long-ish, synthetic grass that's got some silica fillings to sustain it and keep it from getting beaten and worn down.

 

[AZOrange]

I've never understood the appeal of playing on FieldTurf of any other synthetic turf, but all of the football players at my school down here in Texas desperately want our grass field replaced with the stuff. I spoke to my AD a couple weeks ago and he's pretty sure that by 2020 we will in all likelihood do it, as they've already gotten estimates (apparently about $1.3 million). But yeah, as bees said the new, more revolutionary stuff, doesn't have many pellets...it's an actual, long-ish, synthetic grass that's got some silica fillings to sustain it and keep it from getting beaten and worn down.

the appeal mainly is that it's pretty maintenance lite compared to grass.

 

[texascpa]

Love that the EPA doesnt think they should investigate... what are we paying them to do again?

Understand your concern, but this is a state issue, not federal. Every state has their own version of the EPA.

 

[texascpa]

I've never understood the appeal of playing on FieldTurf of any other synthetic turf, but all of the football players at my school down here in Texas desperately want our grass field replaced with the stuff. I spoke to my AD a couple weeks ago and he's pretty sure that by 2020 we will in all likelihood do it, as they've already gotten estimates (apparently about $1.3 million). But yeah, as bees said the new, more revolutionary stuff, doesn't have many pellets...it's an actual, long-ish, synthetic grass that's got some silica fillings to sustain it and keep it from getting beaten and worn down.

The perception is that it's a "faster" field.

 

[StanCuse44]

Easy they measure polar ice - but only report on ice loss.

Polar ice and regulating free-standing water on private property after a rain storm.. You know, something we used to call "puddles".

 

[MaxwellCuse]

I guess I should be thankful that my daughters' school was too underfunded to afford artificial turf for their playing fields. I'm not always thrilled about the youngest playing women's rugby at college, but they are at least relegated to the old grass soccer field, so again no worries about tire pellets.

 

[TJR6498]

Some companies have and are experimenting with different "Fill" materials for "Field Turf" and if you visit any of the Mfr's websites you will see that there are various types of "Field Turf" for every type of sport along with types meant to be used on multipurpose fields. These different styles can have varying lengths of the "Synthetic Grass" based on what is best suited for the sport being played on it. The common "Field Turf" most of us are familiar with are filled with the mini black pebbles made from recycled tires. Typical recommended lifetime from what I have seen is 10-15 years for a surface depending on how much play and how well kept.