Study finds toxic cocktail in synthetic turf
A Sky News Investigation has lifted the lid on synthetic sports fields and the cocktail of chemicals children are often playing on.
Microplastics
FIFA Quality Programme for Football Turf Handbook of Requirements (2015 Edition)
The manufacturer should be asked to supply to the purchaser an assurance that the sports surface together with its supporting layers, does not contain in its finished state any substance which is known to be toxic, mutagenic, teratogenic or carcinogenic when in contact with the skin. Furthermore that no such substances will be released as a vapour or dust during normal use. (page 27)
Synthetic Turf Rubber Crumb – We are urging the NSW Government to take action – AUSMAP
Action to address the installation and management of synthetic turf fields in NSW represents a valuable opportunity to curb the spread of microplastics in our waterways. Revelations of environmental impacts and significant research gaps in the recent NSW Chief Scientist and Engineers Report (CSE) Synthetic Turf in Public Spaces (2023) have highlighted these surfaces as a critical concern.
The dark side of artificial greening: Plastic turfs as widespread pollutants of aquatic environments
The presence of artificial turf fibers was specifically investigated in river and sea surface waters.A rtificial turf fibers accounted for up to 15% of meso- and macroplastic abundance. Artificial turf fibers were composed of polyethylene (86.3%) and polypropylene (13.7%). Up to 20,000 fibers day−1 and 213,200 fibers km−2 were found in river and sea surface waters. Riverine flux of artificial turf fibers was positively related to rainfall.
Total Environment Centre – AUSMAP Study on Microplastics
Letter to Hon Penny Sharpe Minister for Environment | September 2023
Urban Runoff Mortality Syndrome (URMS): 6-PPD quinone & HMMM
Eurofins Environment Testing Australia now offers the targeted analysis of 6-PPD quinone & HMMM by isotope dilution LC-MS/MS in wastewaters and stormwater run-off as well as playground rubber crumb samples. These emerging contaminants have been implicated in what is called Urban Runoff Mortality Syndrome (URMS) that gained notoriety in early 2021 when scientists from University of Washington using high-resolution accurate mass liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-QToF-MS) documented tyre additives and their degradants viz 6-PPD and its ozonation product 6-PPD quinone that were responsible for the deaths of Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) in Pacific Northwest America.
Classed as emerging contaminants, our Team in Brisbane have developed a method to determine 6-PPD quinone and HMMM at parts per trillion (ppt) levels in surface water, sediments, and rubber crumb widely used in sports fields and playgrounds as well as some multipurpose outdoor activity areas.
Total Environment Centre Newsletter 2023 | Issue 2
TEC’s AUSMAP research into rubber crumb, a recycled granulate (<5mm) made from end-of-life tyres which is used as infill for synthetic turf fields and for playground surfaces, is attracting
attention. It’s a collaborative effort with a northern Sydney council aiming to address current knowledge gaps in relation to the loss of rubber crumb and synthetic grass blades, and the
effectiveness of existing stormwater mitigation traps, at a synthetic sports field in Sydney’s north-west.
The dark side of artificial greening: Plastic turfs as widespread pollutants of aquatic environments
Plastics are regarded as a major threat to ecosystems worldwide. Global plastic production reaches peaks of about 450 million metric tons (Mt) annually (Geyer et al., 2017), while estimates of microplastics – plastics smaller than 5 mm in size – in the oceans continue to rise (Isobe et al., 2021).
Norman Griffiths Oval, West Pymble – Position Paper
How a large Synthetic Turf Sports Field was approved near an ecologically sensitive environment at Norman Griffiths Oval West Pymble, and the dangerous health, safety, and environmental consequences of synthetic turf fields in general.
Synthetic turf used in sports fields – NSW EPA
The design and use of synthetic turf on community sporting fields and any environmental impacts are assessed as part of the planning process under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979