The Massachusetts Chapter of the Sierra Club sent this letter to the City of Newton urging leaders to reject the installation of artificial turf at Albemarle Field and use only organic infill materials if the City replaces the artificial turf at Newton South. In the letter, sent on July 5, the club enumerated dangers of using artificial turf, including:
- Use of fossil fuels to make plastic
- Heat-island effect
- Removal of acres of ecosystems that sequester carbon
- Loss of natural habitat
- Unsanitary nature of plastic
- Material make-up of turf including PFAS
- Generation of non-biodegradable microplastics
As previously reported, more than 50 residents petitioned the City Council to hold a public hearing on the dangers of artificial turf in an attempt to get City officials to take these actions prior to any new or replacement installations of artificial turf fields. The Parks, Recreation and Culture Department requested funding to replace the two artificial turf fields at Newton South. As part of the Synthetic Turf Replacement Projects, the City is also planning to add an additional turf field in Albemarle Field for use by Newton North High School.
The Programs and Services Committee voted No Action Necessary on the petition, with several Councilors docketing the following in response to concerns raised:
1) Discussion on Field Maintenance and the Capital Improvement Plan and
2) Discussion with City Staff regarding a cost-benefit analysis on grass vs additional artificial turf fields
Both of these were discussed recently at the June 21 Programs and Services Committee meeting (see also Fig City News Meeting Report and NewTV video).
Ed. Note: Amy Sangiolo is co-chair of the Climate Crisis Subcommittee of the Newton Democratic City Committee. She signed the petition regarding use of artificial turf.
