BELOW IS AN ARCHIVED FLYER FOR THE COMMUNITY FORUM THAT TOOK PLACE BACK ON 11-8-21 .

THE CURRENT CALL-TO-ACTION CAN BE FOUND AT https://www.questionfakegrass.org

Scope, Consequences, Costs of Artificial Turfing LGUSD:

Last fall, as part of planning for LGUSD landscape renovations, the district's landscape designer presented plans to fix up the fields and some other areas at the 3 downtown elementary schools. The plans involved levelling the fields, addressing drainage issues, efficiently irrigating them, and resodding them.

While that version of the plan is still an option, the district now seems to be favoring a more recent proposal by the designer to "upgrade" at least one of those fields to artificial turf and install patches of this fake grass throughout courtyards on all 3 campuses. Cost-savings is NOT the motive. The district has acknowledged that artificial turf does not save the district money. In fact, the "upgrade" will cost an extra $1 million per field for initial construction with ongoing replacement costs of $600K every 8-10 years. If and when funding allows, additional LGUSD campus fields might get the "upgrade".

Even if your local school field or courtyards are not yet targets, if these plans move forward, they will be setting a precedent of artificial turf usage that may extend across all 5 campuses in time. .

Is fake grass really what we want to prioritize spending LGUSD's limited funds on? Aren't there other construction projects that would better serve LGUSD's K-8 students?

One motive often cited for artificial turf usage is water conservation. Although water conservation is a priority, the water district does NOT promote installing artificial turf. Local organizations that prioritize environmental conservation have written to the school board discouraging use of artificial turf. Environmental conservation is about MUCH more than water conservation. Well-planned living landscapes provide loads of environmental benefits that justify judicious and efficient use of water. Water usage needs to be evaluated in a much broader context. As a community working together to share natural resources, is THE place to severely restrict water the shared field that may serve as the only daily exposure to nature that hundreds of our kids in dense, urban developments get?

Are you familiar with heat issues that come with artificial turf? Artificial turf, even with plant-based infill, gets HOT. For ex, on a sunny, 80 degree day, it might be 110 degrees on artificial turf with cork infill. Last schoolyear, we had 77 days above 80 degrees. Climate change is likely to make fields even hotter, and on more days. Heat-island effect radiates to adjoining property, spectators, and endangers perimeter trees. Natural grass is usually near or below ambient temperature and thanks to evapotranspiration behaves like nature's air conditioner. A single high-school-sized baseball field provides up to 70 tons of air conditioning! Where do our kids go to escape the heat of the asphalt at noon if we take away the cool grass? Even when the turf is not unsafely hot, the elevated temps may just be plain miserable at lunch and PE for students and staff. A super-heated surface for athletic exertion is not wise. Young children are closest to the hot surface, least capable of body-temperature regulation, and least able to recognize their own heat distress--- or advocate for themselves in such cases. Solutions include mandated water breaks, watering the plastic to provide 15 minutes of relief before the temp rebounds, or suspending field use entirely on days when it's hot enough to burn users. The need to suspend field use or water plastic partly defeats the purposes of artificial turf.

Question whether motives for installing artificial turf outweigh these compelling reasons to dismiss artificial turf, especially given that alternatives are within reach...

Downsides of Artificial Turf:

WATER USE UNDERESTIMATED - Uses water for cooling, cleaning, maintenance. Required to maintain warranty.

MAINTENANCE UNDERESTIMATED - Needs continual cleaning of dried-on sweat, spit, blood, vomit, dog poop/pee, bird poop, food, gum. Sweeping/leaf blowing. Brushing to keep pile up. Repairs. Requires regular testing of surface and infill hardness for SAFETY. Warranties have restrictions inconducive to elementary school multi-use fields (no lawn chairs, no staking of bounce houses or tents, discourage food and beverage, etc.)

HEAT ISLAND - Heats campuses, kids can’t play on it on hot days, endangers surrounding trees, affects insects/wildlife. Burn and heat stroke risk. The surface temperature can be 40 to 70 degrees higher than air temperature depending on weather conditions and time of day.

TURF INJURIES - Heat, twisting/torque ('sticky'ness hinders rotation), harder on joints, concussion, turfburn/friction (raw and limb-length, exacerbated by heat, humidity, sweat, and prior injury; frequent reinjury and infections; increased risk of MRSA). Foot & ankle injury is twice as high on artificial turf as on grass. ACL and knee injury rates also significantly higher. Concussion studies confirm that younger children are most vulnerable to brain injury as their development continues, in addition to having thinner skulls and less developed neck muscles to support the head during a fall or impact. Frequent industry misrepresentation of reputable studies, e.g., by picking their own cohorts from the data to reach different results.

LAWSUITS FOR INJURY/DEATH. - Heat-related. Slip-and-fall injuries when playing on wet surface or in rain. Risk of retroactive liability claims as safety of field comes into question.

TOXICITY - Toxins found in infills marketed as "plant-based", lead in the "grass blades", PFAS "forever" chemical bioaccumulation, methane and ethylene off-gassing. All elements of the turf with use and extended weather exposure can break down into microscopic particles forming an unhealthy respirable dust. Independent, peer-reviewed, published studies raise the alarm on types of toxins, their concentration, and their synergies. Absence of proof of harm is not proof of absence of harm.

MICROPLASTIC & INFILL RUNOFF INTO WATERWAYS - Causes water pollution & endangers aquatic life.

LACK OF RECYCLING - Industry concedes there are NO recycling plants in the US. What do we do with tons of plastic and infill every 8-10 years?

ELIMINATES DAILY CONTACT WITH NATURE for increasing number of kids who don't get that in LG's dense housing developments.

CONTRADICTS EVERYTHING WE HAVE BEEN TEACHING OUR CHILDREN ABOUT PLASTIC - Artificial turf is considered a non-essential single-use plastic. Refuse it.

COST: $1M more than a new natural grass field + $600K+ every 8-10 years to replace.

SUMMARY: Natural grass is safer, softer, cooler, and cheaper than artificial turf.