Better Safe Than Sorry

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Christopher Gavigan

Monday, August 06, 2007

There is no harm in studying the possible health ramifications of artificial turf made from old tires.

Why not err on the side of safety and heed the recommendation of an independent environmental group that has suggested a delay for towns or schools planning to install artificial turf that is made from chopped up tires?

As schools and sports complexes across the country move toward installation of the artificial athletic surfaces, questions have been raised about the possible toxicity of their composition - rubber pellets made from discarded and ground-up tires.

Recent preliminary tests conducted at the state-run Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station showed that volatile organic compounds are being released into the air from the rubber pellets made from groundup tires that form the fill material of the artificial turf.

The independent group Environment and Human Health Inc. commissioned the Vo-Ag Station to do the study after questions about possible health hazards related to the turf were raised. Locally, both Montville High School and Connecticut College have fields made from the questionable rubber pellets.

News that Environment and Human Health was recommending that others planning to install the turf await further study before moving forward has caused outrage among some supporters of the fake turf, who consider it a safer option for athletes because it absorbs impact and helps prevent some injuries better than natural grass.

It's also easier to maintain.

And for many communities, it is a symbol of athletic prestige. All of that is fine. But if reputable scientists at a state laboratory reported to Environment and Human Health Inc. that preliminary tests showed a dozen or more organic compounds were evident in testing of the pellets, and suggested more studies be done, why ignore that advice?

The state Department of Environmental Protection has agreed to study the possibility that toxic chemicals from the rubber pellets could seep into groundwater. It is a cautionary measure. And interestingly, support for installation of the artificial turf was spurred in part by new state restrictions on pesticide application on natural turf fields.

In this day and age, there are legitimate concerns about environmental safety. We now know how ordinary things can hurt us. So what is the harm in giving scientists a little more time to figure out what the
ground-up tires may or may not be doing to athletes?

Producers say the rubber pellets are inert and harmless. Let's be certain.

This was an editorial by The New London Day published on Monday August 6, 2007.