City of Glendale Bans Synthetic Grass Despite Environmental Benefits and the Need to Conserve Water
Friday, November 18, 2011
GLENDALE, CA – While the City of Glendale, California has
imposed mandatory watering conservation measures since July 2009 in response to
a severe drought, yesterday it announced a ban on an increasingly popular water
conservation tool – the use of synthetic grass in front yards. While citing
health concerns, the City continues to permit homeowners to install synthetic
grass in their backyards.
"Unfortunately for local residents that already
enjoy their synthetic grass landscape, Glendale Mayor Laura Friedman and city
leaders might not have been adequately
briefed about the safety and many benefits of today’s synthetic grass,” said
Rick Doyle, president of the Synthetic Turf
Council. "We urge the City
of Glendale to reconsider its decision and learn more about how today’s
environmentally friendly synthetic grass looks like natural grass and has been
proven to be safe by organizations such as the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency and Consumer Product Safety Commission.”
Glendale High School, Disneyland, the Twentynine Palms
Marine Corps Base and thousands of homes, businesses, golf courses, and public
spaces have turned to synthetic grass to provide a lush, attractive landscape
solution that saves precious water, eliminates the use of toxic fertilizers,
and requires minimal maintenance. Use of synthetic grass for playgrounds allows for continuous and safe
play to help combat childhood obesity, an important objective of First Lady
Michele Obama’s "Let’s Move” program and the NFL’s "Play 60” campaign. It
also creates more recreational opportunities for people with disabilities that
require an accessible play area, and is used by retirement communities for
landscaping to assist residents with mobility challenges.
According to the Southern Nevada Water Authority,
every square foot of natural grass replaced by synthetic turf conserves 55
gallons a year by eliminating the need for watering. If an average lawn is 1,800 square feet, then
homeowners in Glendale save 99,000 gallons of water each year or about $400
annually. In addition, the EPA estimates that 33.2 million tons of yard
trimmings, which are eliminated by synthetic grass, were generated in the U.S.
in 2009, the third largest component of municipal solid waste in landfills.
Recognizing these benefits, other California municipalities such as Riverside
and Foster City are offering homeowners rebates to replace
their irrigated areas with synthetic grass.
Synthetic turf has also been proven
to be safe following studies by the U.S. EPA, the Consumer Product Safety
Commission, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment of the
California EPA, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and
Department of Health, Connecticut Departments of Public Health and the
Environment to name a few. Visit www.syntheticturfcouncil.org to see studies posted in their entirety under Research
& Latest Thinking.
In addition, after the Consumer
Product Safety Commission studied the risks of lead chromate in pigments that
were previously once was used to color synthetic turf, they wrote in 2008,
"young children are not at risk from exposure to lead in these
fields." The U.S. synthetic turf industry has voluntarily reduced
the use of lead chromate to at or near 0 for all synthetic turf products --
well below the standard legislated by the Federal Government for children's
toys. The Synthetic Turf Council, representing over two
hundred companies in the synthetic turf industry, encourages the City of
Glendale to learn more about synthetic turf’s proven safety, positive impact on
the environment and other benefits by visiting, www.syntheticturfcouncil.org and also
reviewing Synthetic Turf 360⁰: A Guide for Today’s Synthetic Turf.
About the Synthetic Turf Council
Based
in Atlanta, the
Synthetic Turf Council was founded in 2003 to promote the industry and to
assist buyers and end users with the selection, use and maintenance of
synthetic turf systems in sports field, golf, municipal parks, airports,
landscape and residential applications. The organization is also a
resource for current, credible, and independent research on the safety and
environmental impact of synthetic turf. Membership includes builders,
landscape architects, testing labs, maintenance providers, manufacturers, suppliers,
installation contractors, infill material suppliers and other specialty service
companies. For more information, visit www.syntheticturfcouncil.org.
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