Plastic Grass isn’t Greener

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Originally appears in the Winter 2019 issue.

All environmental and outdoor educators are aware of the physical, psychological, and social benefits that children enjoy from activity in natural environments. In schoolyards and playgrounds, it is a pleasure to watch students revel when playing on fresh grass. Yet, increasingly, the natural grass fields and wood chip playgrounds in our schools and other public spaces are being replaced with synthetic surfaces. Examples of these surfaces include poured-in-place rubber, foam padding, or carpets of plastic with various types of infill, of which crumb rubber from shredded used tires is the most common.

There are three main reasons that administrators have converted their playing fields and other outdoor playing surfaces to synthetic turf. The first is that grass fields and playgrounds deteriorate when overused. Secondly, inclement weather usually leads to outdoor activities being cancelled.

Lastly, the synthetic turf industry has been successful in creating the perception that their products offer an easy, low-maintenance solution to overused grass surfaces.

At first glance, these perceptions appear to be true. However, there is plenty of evidence that using shredded old tires and plastic play surfaces is both destructive to the environment and potentially hazardous to human health. This is especially true of children, who are more vulnerable to toxins. While the toxicity of these materials is well-documented — whether off-gassing into the air or leaching into the soil — there have not yet been any comprehensive, long-term studies that assess these factors or the associated health effects.