KEEP IT REAL—NO SYNTHETIC TURF!
Synthetic turf is bad for athletes and bad for the environment.
There has been a six-fold increase in synthetic turf replacing natural turf sports fields in the past five years in NSW, and the rate of installation is increasing.
Often, these dangerous surfaces are turned to as the only option because councils and sporting clubs are not adequately resourced to maintain natural turf to its full capacity.
Best practice natural turf design and management can support just as much use as synthetic turf - but local councils and sporting clubs need more support from the state government to be able to do this, so we don’t have as many wet matches cancelled each winter!
So what's the issue with synthetic?
The final report of the independent review of the NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer into the design, use and impacts of synthetic turf in public spaces found that the heat-retaining property of synthetic turf can cause heat stress and heat-related illness and is potentially hazardous for children, especially when unshaded, as its surface can be up to 38 degrees hotter than that of natural turf.
Synthetic turf increases water run-off because it is not absorbent, which can lead to greater pollution in waterways. Rubber infill, plastic turf blades and microplastics have been found in waterways from the run‑off from those fields. The degradation of synthetic materials can lead to leaching of chemicals that pose risks to soil and water quality. Replacing natural grass with synthetic turf disrupts the ecological functions of soil and exacerbates habitat loss.
Synthetic turf increases the risk of adjacent buildings igniting in a bushfire. Knowing that, it is horrifying that several schools in the Blue Mountains have synthetic turf surfaces. Even worse, the full extent of those risks is not known, with the chief scientist making a key recommendation for further research into the chemical composition of materials used in synthetic turf as well as better data collection.
My motion calling on the government to support and facilitate local councils and clubs to improve design and maintenance of natural turf passed the Parliament in September 2024! |
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Both the Chief Scientist's report and the NSW government's draft "Synthetic Turf in Public Open Space – Guidelines for Decision-Makers" acknowledge knowledge gaps regarding impacts on human and environmental health. While further research is needed and welcome, the Greens believe that there should be a moratorium on approvals and funding for synthetic turf installation in public open spaces while this research is undertaken.
In 2024, the Greens made a submission to the draft Synthetic Turf in Public Open Space Guidelines, outlining our concerns about the dangerous expansion of synthetic turf surfaces in NSW. You can read that submission here.