More and more kids play on soft, always-green fields at their school or parks. Is this a great convenience of modern life or a reason for concern? An official CDC Healthy Advisory issued June 18, 2008 warns about potentially high lead levels in some artificial turfs used on athletic fields and playgrounds. Artificial turfs made from nylon or from nylon/polyethylene blends may contain enough lead to pose a health concern for children – if the field is weathered, dusty, old, frequently used, or contains abraded, faded, or broken fibers. The risk is highest for children under age 6. The risk of lead exposure is low if the field is new and the fibers are all still intact. The lead risk is also low if the turf is made with only polyethylene fibers. The CDC does not yet know the magnitude of the risk, but recommends considering, for reasons of public safety, and especially for the safety of young children, posting signs that urge the following precautions when playing on artificial turf:
- After playing on the field, individuals are encouraged to perform aggressive hand and body washing for at least 20 seconds using soap and warm water.
- Clothes worn on the field should be taken off and turned inside out as soon as possible after using the field to avoid tracking contaminated dust to other places. In vehicles, people can sit on a large towel or blanket if it is not feasible to remove their clothes. These clothes, towels, and blankets should be washed separately and shoes worn on the field should be kept outside of the home.
- Eating while on the field or turf product is discouraged.
- Avoid contaminating drinking containers with dust and fibers from the field. When not drinking, close them and keep them in a bag, cooler, or other covered container on the side of the field.
The issues surrounding artificial turf and artifical grasses where young children play are complex. At their best, these surfaces may help increase the use of fields, increase active play, and help decrease obesity. They may save money for schools and parks, and decrease the use of water, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides. They can provide a new use for recycled tires.
On the other hand, there are concerns about toxic exposures on some of these fields, and toxins carried away from the fields – beyond just the lead issue. Those made with recycled tires may create their own set of problems. The small rubber pellets made from them pose potential hazard concerns such as the styrene, butadiene, and ethylene propylene diene they contain. The turfs can increase heat both on the field and in the air. They replace purifying, carbon-dioxide-inhaling plants with the off-gassing of potentially toxic fumes. And they may change habitats for local wildlife, large and small.
It’s summer (in North America) where do you want your child to play?
| June 28th, 2008 at 2:21 pm
This is very concerning. How many parents, with younger children around, will follow all these precautions? Are there any proposed regulations or laws being made to address this health hazard? How is a turf field disposed of when it is worn out? Seems it could be dangerous in a land fill.
| June 28th, 2008 at 11:41 pm
Kelly, I agree that it is hard to picture kids everywhere turning their clothes inside out after playing on artificial turf to avoid spreading the dust.
But I do hope that people will become more aware of turf dust and tire-rubber pellets, to the extent that it would feel strange not to wash the hands after exposure, or wrong to bring soccer snacks onto the turf.
Kids need to stay hydrated while playing (especially in the heat of some of these fields), but I hope they’ll keep their beverages closed when not drinking — and preferably in a cooler.
There are no national guidelines for lead levels in artifical turf, but the New Jersey Department of Health (who first identified the problem) has called for Federal action. I don’t know of anything happening yet on a Federal level, except this CDC Advisory and ongoing investigation.
Perhaps parents’ greatest impact will be with their local schools and parks. When turf decisions arise, parents should be part of the discussion on their kids behalf. Parents can also call for laboratory testing of the turf where their children play, if there is reason for concern.
If the field has lead levels above 400 ppm, young children should not be allowed to play there, per the CDC. If fields are worn and dusty, parents can call for replacing the fields as soon as practical, as the CDC recommends.
Although the CDC calls for removing the more hazardous turf, I don’t know how it should be disposed of. Perhaps one of our readers knows?
The Synthetic Turf Council denies any reason for concern. In their May 2008 presentation to the Consumer Products Safety Commission, they report that, “There is no scientific evidence of a health risk for children or adults based on recent test results and current knowledge of the chemical structure of aged synthetic turf products.”
| June 30th, 2008 at 11:23 am
This is yet another example of how we keep repeating the same mistake - first create a product and sell it to consumers, then find out if it’s safe for our children’s health and development. My own daughter’s school uses shredded tires on the playground and the acrid smell of it incited my initial concerns. Whether it’s solid surface synthetic turf, crumb rubber, or shredded rubber, the fact of the matter is that we know very little about long-term safety issues. Healthy Child Healthy World just covered this complex issue in our latest edition of the Healthy Child Times. Check it out! We want to make it an on-going report, so we’d love to hear parent’s stories and questions.
| June 30th, 2008 at 11:31 am
Sorry- It doesn’t look like my hyperlinks made it through the system, check out the Healthy Child coverage of the Toxic Turf issue at http://healthychild.org/resources/article/what_lies_beneath_toxic_turf_under_our_toes/
| July 5th, 2008 at 10:50 pm
[…] misinformation is also beginning. Read this posting carefully from a doctor in California. In his explanation and from some others in the comments section, the focus of conversation moves […]
| July 6th, 2008 at 12:11 am
Wow, and I was just thinking how our little piece of artificial grass on our back patio is pesticide free and fertilizer free, but now I have lead paint to think about, which makes sense. Since lead had to be removed from indoor house paint, you would think they would have extended that to outdoor house paint too, and while the manufacturers are already producing lead-free paint, why not use that for the artificial green patio grass that is sold alongside carpet? Speaking of carpet, I’m sure that the polyester carpet and foam padding reduces indoor air quality, especially when it is new. Hopefully this is greatly reduced after a few years of it airing out? Although, if you do have new carpet what is the best remedy to counteract this?
| July 6th, 2008 at 8:37 am
To be clear on language: A number of people like to use the term synthetic or artificial “grass” to refer to the newer fields that use infill of sand or rubber pellets to keep the field soft and resilient, and use synthetic or artificial “turf” to refer to the older fiber fields without this.
The Synthetic Turf Council, though, that represents the artificial field industry, considers them all “turf” — just older and newer technologies. Like the STC, I use “turf” to refer to the whole category, recognizing that each generation of technology has its own risks and benefits. Here’s a bit from the STC industry-sponsored FAQ on their website:
“Q: What is synthetic turf?
The latest generation of synthetic turf is a grass-like surface covering that replicates lush natural grass in appearance and function. When used on playing athletic fields, it provides a consistent year-round, all-weather playing surface built to withstand extended use without downtime for recovery. When used as a landscaping cover, synthetic turf provides a low maintenance, weed-free ground cover that doesn’t need to be watered or fertilized.
Q: How is synthetic turf made?
Most synthetic turf systems installed today include a drainage layer, a multi-layered backing system, and resilient grass blades that are infilled with a granular filler to resemble natural turf. “Infilled” means that the man-made grass blades are interspersed with a top soil created with sand and/or granulated recycled tire rubber or other materials that provide the necessary stability, uniformity, and resiliency. Each blade customarily stands above the infill material. The typical length and quality is determined by the specific activity requirements.
Q: Why has synthetic turf become so popular over the past few years?
The escalating need for durable fields that accommodate multiple sports teams, coupled with increasing maintenance, water usage costs and climatic shifts, have prompted a rising number of schools and parks to turn to synthetic turf to balance their program needs. Today’s synthetic turf is designed to stimulate the experience of practicing and playing on a grass-like surface year round. Demand has grown to the point where over 800 multi-use synthetic turf sports fields are installed annually in North American schools, colleges, parks and professional sports stadiums…”
| July 6th, 2008 at 9:14 am
Tina, the NJ Department of Health has just completed their investigation of the lead risk from some artificial turfs. The turf industry had argued that the lead from those fields was not bioavailable, or would not get into people’s blood at high enough levels to cause concern. The Department of Health found that the lead was indeed as bioavailable as that from lead paint, is absorbed by the body if swallowed or inhaled, and does pose a real risk to those playing on fields with high lead levels. Here’s their update: http://www.state.nj.us/health/artificialturf/documents/turf_update3_0608.pdf
But the lead problem was only investigated in turfs made of a blend containing nylon fibers AND where the fibers are showing visible wear. Check your label, if you can. Many turfs use polyethylene (PET) alone, kinda like the plastic in clear, single serving water bottles. These were not part of the investigation, but are believed to be of low risk for lead. Whether you can check the label or not, check for wear. The problems come from fibers that are fraying, faded, or broken, and from their dust.
The Synthetic Turf Council made a presentation to the Consumer Products Safety Council in May 2008. They said that the form of lead used in turf “is not absorbed by the body if ingested or inhaled.” (In fact, they would like to be able to label turf with acceptable levels of this form of lead as “lead-free” for this reason). They explained that the lead was included in the pigment used to color the turf for three reasons: colorfastness, UV stabilization, and vibrancy. They say that it’s the brightly-colored areas, such as lines or logos on a field, that can have the highest levels, over 3,000 ppm. They also say that they are testing new pigments to try to reduce lead levels while keeping colors bright. Here’s their whole presentation: http://www.cpsc.gov/businfo/Doyle.pdf
As to your question, Tina, about polyester carpet with foam backing and indoor air quality – yes, the fumes are greatly reduced after a few years of airing out. If you have newer carpet, you can speed this up with open windows, with some air filters, and – one of my favorite solutions – with some house plants. This method of improving indoor air quality has been studied by NASA. Plants such as potted mu, peace lilies, English ivy, and Gerbera daisies can reduce the hidden fumes by 90 percent. There’s more on this, and references, in Raising Baby Green.
| July 14th, 2008 at 1:48 pm
As a concerned parent, I do not believe the media has approached this matter of lead in turf fields appropriately. It is evident that these falsehoods have been published without any factual support. The fact of the matter is that there is lead in some capacity in almost everything that contains color or dyes. In fact, most of the toys that I have in my basement probably have some traces of lead in them. Moreover, the tiled flooring one has in one’s house, kitchen, bathroom contain more lead in them than FieldTurf, yet we don’t hesitate to walk barefoot on such surfaces. The main issue is in relation to the leaching. Despite my background in chemistry, you don’t need to be a chemist to understand that if the lead traces or whatever else they claim to be within the field does not leach, then there is absolutely nothing to worry about. And from someone who knows, whatever is in the field or fake blades of grass, isn’t coming out under natural circumstances. It would take a laboratory, a controlled environment and an extreme and unnatural temperature to release and break down any of the compounds or chemicals that were contained in the product. These FieldTurf fields have not only given myself and my children the opportunity to play sports on a safe and consistent surface year round, but they have helped save our community hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes that would have otherwise been spent on maintaining natural grass fields. If you really want to talk about hazardous, then we should focus on the pesticides that our kids play in on a regular basis on most of the natural grass fields. I am all about the environment, I even drive a hybrid car, but in all truth, FieldTurf, as an artificial turf product, probably does ten times more for the overall good of the planet than plain old natural grass fields do. I am going on record as an educated and informed parent and athlete in saying that there is absolutely nothing to worry about with regards to artificial turf, and that with all the demand for sports, we would all do better to have more of these fields available too.
| July 25th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
In light of the recent press surrounding “lead and artificial turf”, we at FieldTurf have compiled a comprehensive review of the facts which confirm the safety of the FieldTurf artificial turf system. I urge you to review them at http://www.fieldturf.com/leadissues/
Sincerely,
Sean Adelsohn
FieldTurf
| July 30th, 2008 at 8:53 am
In light of the recent press surrounding “lead and artificial turf”, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) took it upon themselves to conduct thorough testing of several artificial turf fields. After carefully examining the results, CPSC spokeswoman Julie Vallese said “parents should not be concerned about harmful levels of lead in artificial turf “and that “our message is: go out and play.” http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08348.html
In addition, we at FieldTurf have compiled a comprehensive review of the facts which confirm the results presented by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and validate the safety of the FieldTurf artificial turf system. I urge you to review them at http://www.fieldturf.com/leadissues/
Sincerely,
Sean Adelsohn
FieldTurf
| August 5th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
I would MUCH prefer my children to play on Field Turf, than on a lawn drenched with fertilizers and pesticides…