by R. Renee Bembry

Created on: March 30, 2009

As populations grow, use of town athletics fields also grows due to increased numbers of athletes vying to participate in athletic field events which tend to be sporty in nature. In addition, current trends of individual sporting leagues increasing their seasons and the popularization of previously less sought-after sports in conjunction with other factors such as field availability is causing scheduling overlaps in communities that do not have enough fields to go around. What this means is that some fields are being utilized more than normal and often for more hours than they should be. Sports team utilization of fields beyond recommended playing hours causes fields to wear down before their time. For these and other reasons, many town governing agencies are opting to utilize synthetic turf fields in their areas; and other governing bodies are anticipating making the switch. Synthetic fields appear to be a sufficient solution to the increased demand for field usage because when compared to grass fields synthetic fields are capable of withstanding repeated trampling over for longer periods of time and with far less maintenance between events than natural grass fields.

In addressing synthetic turf maintenance more specifically, it should be noted that maintenance requirements include tasks such as brushing the fibrous grass-like blades in effort to re-elevate them, removal of leaves and other debris with synthetic turf brushes, and de-compacting the infill dispersed between synthetic turf artificial grass blades. This de-compacting infill is made from sand, recycled tires, and similar sustainable materials. Minimal amounts of water usage and chemical treatments are required to maintain synthetic turfs. This means these fields, after initial installment costs, are considerably less expensive than natural grass fields that need extensive watering, fertilizing, weeding, mowing, re-seeding or sodding, plus costs related to running power machines used in the upkeep process.

Opponents of synthetic turf field use suggest synthetic fields may be unsafe for players and hazardous to the environment. These concerns can be alleviated by reading and understanding current research pinpointing the opposite to be true.

Today's synthetic turf fields are not the unforgiving hard platforms of yesterday. In fact, today's turf fields are much safer because they are made to mimic the stability and buoyancy found in natural grass. Furthermore, studies have shown that following extensive synthetic turf improvements that began in the late 1980-1990's, concerns regarding synthetic turf health and safety issues are negligible. These studies have been and are still in the process of being conducted by scientists and government agencies worldwide. Participants in the studies include Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, Canada, Connecticut and California governing bodies. Also included are international sports organizations and trade institutions.

Considering the facts that modern synthetic turf fields have come a long way in appearance, and especially in performance and use forgiveness, it seems decisions regarding use of these fields is a no brainer when it comes to towns deciding - yes we will - unless of course town's do not believe they can afford the purchasing and installation fees. In case of the latter, town officials may want to reexamine costs associated with maintaining natural grass fields in their communities and then compare those expenses over time - say for ten years - to the costs of installing and then saving from the use of synthetic turf fields.

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