Send this Letter to your NYC City Council Representative today regarding Artifical Turf in NYC Parks

Saturday, December 27, 2008

Send this Letter to your NYC City Council Representative today regarding Artifical Turf in NYC Parks

December 27, 2008

New York City

Dear City Council Member [ ]:

I am an active, registered voter in your district. I am very concerned about the 100 new artificial turf fields that have been installed in New York City since 1998, and especially the ones here in northern Manhattan.

These fields are composed of tiny pieces of rubber (usually from old, ground-up tires), which are made of toxic chemicals that produce particulates that our children are exposed to in these fields for organized sports. This adds to the already staggering number of chemicals that our young people are being exposed to on a daily basis, especially in northern Manhattan which has asthma rates that are 4 times the national average.

The new laws that are being passed to remove pesticides from schools and playing fields are a positive change. Pesticides, herbicides and fungicides are designed to kill bugs, weeds and fungi. They act as neurotoxins and endocrine disrupters on humans. We do not want to exposure our children to this.

Children are highly susceptible to environment toxins because of their still developing organs and reproductive systems. Like adults, they are exposed through breathing, ingesting or upon contact with the skin, but pound for pound, take a much greater dose.

We must all take a look at the human health and the environmental impact these playing fields may have and try to avoid the possibility of some grave unintended consequences that might be incurred.

Although I am not a scientist, I know how environmental exposures can affect human health, as well as fish, birds and other animals. The best and safest way to manage playing fields is to simply treat them organically. This is also the most cost effective method in the long run.

It would be an injustice to our children to install artificial turf that is expensive and comes with its own set of health effects, such as high lead levels.

Here is a very troubling quote from an article by Turfgrass Producers International: “Ground tire rubber is used in some artificial fields as an impact-softening base. The toxic content (including heavy metals) of tires prohibits their disposal in landfills or through ocean dumping. Yet, this toxic material is being allowed in large quantities where children and professional athletes come into direct contact with it.”

Parents, grandparents, educators, legislators, and anyone who protects our children should not allow the installation of another synthetic turf field in New York City.

A concerned active voter,

Name: ___________________________

Signature: ________________________


Harlem Kids: Send this Letter to your NYC City Council Representative today regarding Artifical Turf in NYC Parks