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LB Parks/Rec Dept's Consultant Firm On Synthetic Soccer Fields Is Member Of Synthetic Turf Industry Advocacy Group; Parks/Rec Staff Memo To Parks/Rec Comm'n Seeks Approval Of Crumb Rubber "Encapsulated" With Some Acrylic Substance In Parks Citywide, Downplays Concerns


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(June 14, 2015, 4:10 p.m.) -- Long Beach's Dept. of Parks, Recreation and Marine's chosen consultant on using synthetic turf to replace natural grass soccer fields is a firm that is a member of a synthetic turf industry advocacy group.

Parks & Rec management doesn't publicly disclose this matter, but the firm is quite open about it on its website, stating that it is the only West Coast firm "certified" by the industry advocacy group (details below.)

In an agendizing memo, Parks & Rec management recommends installing "crumb rubber" (material from scrap tires) encapsulated by some type of acrylic material to replace natural grass turf initially at three soccer fields -- El Dorado Park West (ELB along Studebaker Rd. north of Willow St./5th dist), Admiral Kidd Park (WLB/7th dist) and Seaside Park (North of downtown/1st dist.) -- and approve its subsequent use in parks citywide.

The issue will be the subject of a special meeting of LB's Parks & Rec Commission on Monday June 15 at 6:30 p.m., El Dorado Park West Community Center, 2800 Studebaker Rd. To view LB Parks & Rec management's agendizing memo, click here. material"

LBREPORT.com previously published in full a report by LB Parks & Rec's hired consultant, visible at this link.

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LB Parks & Rec management's consultant, D.A. Hogan & Associates, describes itself in pertinent part on its website as follows:

With over 200 successful synthetic turf fields including several player friendly resilient infilled systems, we have an understanding of all the various available sports surfaces. We're experts on the diverse performance characteristics of synthetic turf. This expertise is critical to providing a design that will best meet the client's programming needs, budget limitations, and maintenance resources...

Synthetic Turf Council Certified

D.A. Hogan & Associates is a member of the Synthetic Turf Council. This organization was formed to establish industry standards for synthetic turf field installations. David Anderson was a founding member of the Council and was one of the key authors of the Suggested Guidelines to Synthetic Turf Systems document. D.A. Hogan & Associates involvement with STC ensures that their knowledge of industry innovations, manufacturing techniques, installation procedures, materials testing, and all other facets of synthetic turf fields. D.A. Hogan & Associates is one of the first consulting firms to be certified by the Council, and the only certified firm on the West Coast.

D.A. Hogan is a member of and certified by, although not part of the board of directors of, the "Synthetic Turf Council," whose website describes itself as "the legitimate resource for industry information." The Synthetic Turf Council's stated objective is "to encourage, promote and facilitate better understanding among all parties involved in the manufacture, selection, delivery and use of today's synthetic turf systems. To that end, we make every attempt to dispense information that is neutral, objective and validated by independent, current and credible research."

The group's "mission statement" says it is "committed to community wellness and environmental responsibility through the use of synthetic turf [and] is the industry's voice for promoting the highest ethical and professional standards, education, legislative and community advocacy." Its "mission and purpose" (at this link) includes "Advocate on Critical Issues...[t]o promote the growth of the synthetic turf market and other industry interests and advocate on critical issues, e.g., end-of-life reclamation, reuse and recycling, heat, and any other matters pertaining to the health, welfare and positive image of the STC and its members" and "provide neutral, technical and need-based industry guidelines to STC members, end-user decision makers, architects and engineers, installers, and others" and "grow the acceptance and demand for synthetic turf systems and its related products and services, and increase the public awareness and influence of the STC and its members."

The Synthetic Turf Council calls its certification "an exclusive benefit for member companies...who have voluntarily committed to deliver products or services that meet or exceed customer specifications, and conduct themselves in a responsible businesslike manner." To be eligible for Certification, the applicant must meet these requirements.

The Synthetic Turf Council is listed among the opponents of SB 47 in the legislative analysis by the state Senate Health Committee, a bill that would require the state's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) to conduct a study by July 1, 2017 analyzing potential adverse health impacts from synthetic turf made from waste tires.

SB 47 was approved (5-0) by the state Senate's Health Committee in March 2015 but has stalled (on fiscal grounds) in the state Senate Appropriations Committee (chaired by LB-area state Senator Ricardo Lara (D., LB-Huntington Park.) LB Parks & Rec management states (accurately) that SB 47 "will not be voted on in this year's legislative session" but doesn't disclose that LB's Parks & Rec's consultant is part of the Synthetic Turf Council which opposed the bill.

LB Parks & Rec management's memo, visible at this link, cites several grounds for approving use of the acrylic coated crumb rubber...but doesn't provide a balance of substantive, cautionary counter-arguments for the Commission (and the public) to consider and explore.

In recent months, some residents locally, reflecting views expressed in several areas nationally, have raised concerns about the use of crumb rubber (scrap tire pieces.) See multiple recent media reports in several cities: KING-TV, Seattle, WMAR-TV, Baltimore, WCBS-TV, New York City, WBBM-TV, Chicago.

Earlier this year, KCET, Los Angeles (Ch. 28) reported on the controversy at this link. As reported by LBREPORT.com, SB 47 would have funded a study on the health issues and required parks/school districts to consider at least one alternative and hold at least one public meeting on issue.

As indicated in the consultant's report, there are various types of synthetic materials. Parks & Rec management's memo states that it has selected what it calls a [Parks & Rec staff text] "material superior to crumb rubber, due to its ability to coat the material and further protect against potential health impacts. Coated crumb rubber, which has an acrylic coating applied to the exterior of each granulate, that encapsulates the rubber particles to mitigate any potential health impacts..."

To date there has been no study establishing a link between crumb rubber and cancer.

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When these issues arose in Sacramento, supporters of SB 47 included Action for Nature, Brock International, LLC, California Native Plant Society, California Safe Schools, Center for Environmental Health, Clean Water Action, Coalition for San Francisco Neighborhoods, Coalition to Save Ocean Beach / Friends of Sutro Heights Park, D5 Action, Environment and Human Health, Inc., Environment California, GeoTurf/Limonta Sport USA, Golden Gate Audubon Society, Golden Gate Park Preservation Alliance, Haight Ashbury Neighborhood Council, Healthy Soccer SF, Hellas Sports Construction, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility. San Francisco Tomorrow, Senator Quentin L. Kopp, Sierra Club California, SF Ocean Edge, SFPARKS, SPEAK Sunset Parkside Education and Action Committee, SynTurf.org, The Turf Authority, Turf Grass Forum and 77 individuals.

Opponents of SB 47 were the American Sports Builders Association (ASBA), CA Association of School Business Officials, Californians Against Waste, CRM Company, Inc., Liberty Tire Recycling, Los Angeles County Solid Waste Management Committee/Integrated Waste Management Task Force, Synthetic Turf Council and West Coast Rubber Recycling, Inc.

The state Senate's Health Committee legislative analysis stated in March 2015:

ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT [of SB 47] Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) state that "every year millions of pounds of tires are recycled into ground rubber, sometimes called "tire crumb) and placed onto playgrounds and sports fields. PEER represents public health professionals who are concerned that there has been no adequate risk assessment on the potential toxicity to children from direct contact with tire ingredients, such as arsenic, cadmium, chromium, mercury and a number of dangerous hydrocarbons. Neither the US EPA nor the CPSC has ever fully investigated its public health and environmental risks. In fact, US EPA scientific reviews or available literature have concluded that the agency lacks the information required to adequately assess the extent of childhood exposure from ingestion or inhalation of an array of toxic chemicals found within tires."

ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION [to SB 47]: Californians Against Waste (CAW) strongly opposes SB 47, stating that while CAW "often urges the application of the Precautionary Principal in response to conflicting data," "in this instance, [CAW] is not aware of any conflicting data that indicates a health risk from the use of recycled crumb rubber. In fact, the use of this product has been studied more extensively than almost any other recycled product that is sold. There have been more than 50 technical studies and several extensive literature reviews analyzing the health concerns of crumb rubber use (including cancer risk). To the best of our [CAW's] knowledge, none have found an elevated cancer risk." Rubber recycling and synthetic turf manufacturers in opposition state that they fear that the moratorium in SB 47 puts at risk dozens of California businesses and jobs that have invested in building a tire recycling infrastructure.

During Appropriations Committee discussion of SB 47, some of its opponents indicated they are not opposed to conducting a health study (and some said they welcomed it) but opposed what they called a de facto moratorium in the interim.

AYSO Region 177 (Long Beach/Belmont Shore) supports installing synthetic turf in a soccer field at El Dorado Park West (Studebaker Rd. north of Willow St.) In an online petition, the group states:

[AYSO 177 text] Long Beach has a serious problem in that we lack safe and appropriate spaces for youth field sports. This is a proposal to build an artificial turf field at El Dorado Park #1 (North). The current field is very unsafe and has already been responsible for at least one broken leg and multiple other injuries resulting from gopher holes and uneven ground on this field.

We currently have city money earmarked for this field and we need the Long Beach Parks and Recreation Department and City Council to move forward with the proposed fields so that we don't lose the momentum that's been in gained on this initiative over the past few years. It has taken much effort to get things to this point and we now need to move forward at this point.

Projects that benefit youth are difficult to measure by ballots and line items. The benefit to the community can't be measured in votes and dollars, but goes a long way toward improving the quality of life for our young families with children. We want families to want to live and raise their children in Long Beach.

Youth sports, run appropriately, can be an integral part of a healthy and thriving community. It combats our epidemic of childhood obesity, keeps children in school, out of crime, decreases unwanted pregnancies, and in general, helps develop the character of our future citizens and leaders.

But opposition to artificial turf, most recently voiced by the U.S. Women's World Cup soccer team, has arguably called some of these arguments into question. Some members of the U.S. Women's World Cup soccer team have been outspoken in criticizing conditions on the synthetic materials during championship play in Canada (where some media reports indicated field temperatures reached over 120 degrees and resulted in bruises and the like.)

U.S. Team Forward Abby Wamback called the artificial turf used at Winnipeg Stadium a "nightmare" and use the artificial turf was the subject of a objections prior to the World Cup matches (to no avail) by U.S. Women's national team as well as teams from Germany, Brazil and Spain.

NBC News reported on the Women's World Cup matches at this link, stating in pertinent part: "Turf fields are also much hotter than natural grass fields. The surface at this Saturday's cup opener in Edmonton, in which Canada beat China 1-0, reportedly reached 120 degrees an hour before kickoff. At Sunday's games in Ottawa, the field temperature reached 130 degrees."

The artificial turf issue was also reported on June 5 by the Discovery Channel in a story titled, "World Cup Artificial Turf Battle: Is Grass Better?" visible at this link.

Installation of an artificial turf soccer field to replace natural grass at El Dorado Park is opposed by the El Dorado Park South Neighborhood Association, which stated in an April 2015 letter to the Mayor, City Council Parks & Rec Commissioners and Parks & Rec staff:

...Our parks are of great value to us, but apparently they are seen as little more than undeveloped areas to plunder. It's not enough that we share our parks with those who play soccer upon them - a sharing we should all be happy to partake in. Now we are being asked (we hope it's asking, and not just taking) to approve the construction of dedicated soccer fields. To this end, large areas of natural grass will be replace with the most environmentally unfriendly of synthetic turf options. And with this turf comes fencing (and locks), to protect it from, effectively, human contamination. And to add insult to injury, lights will almost certainly be installed so as to extend the hours of play on this expensive, artificial, potentially unhealthful environment.

This will rip out the very soul of our parks. And it's hard to believe that they will be content to stop at just one dedicated soccer field per park. This will just be a starting point.

A perusal of the NextDoor El Dorado Park South comments suggest that most of our neighbors on this site have deep reservations about this idea. Following are some highlights:

Unfortunately, it does sound like more pollution for the neighbors. More light pollution, and trash. They want to spend money on a field, how about money to the park rangers? Bathrooms? Oh, and maybe a few drinking fountains! Wow, sounds like a win win for everyone. Residents get more light and noise and the players [may risk] cancer. I don't want to sound like a downer but I get the feeling that this is a done deal.

Parks are more than just grass and trees and duck ponds and semi-wild critters running about. They are a sanctuary - both a refuge from the asphalt jungle we've created and a reminder, for those of us of a certain age, of the openness and sense of freedom we have lost over the years. Everything has been developed over. Yes, many of us still have green lawns, but even in our beautiful neighborhood our lawns are little more than very small oases. But our parks are just large enough to elicit a sense... a feeling...of the natural world. It's their size that makes this happen. The open. unhindered view is great enough to take you to another place... a more beautiful place, right here in our suburban world. Being in our parks elicits feelings of calm, and wonder, and joy... and peace.

Therefore, on behalf of the board members of EPSNA who voted against artificial turf and fencing, and the 645 homes of this Neighborhood Association, please vote to keep and maintain the natural grass soccer fields.

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And in an email to Parks & Rec Commissioners, staff, and the Mayor and Council, veteran park protection advocate Ann Cantrell wrote in pertinent part:

...If it was the intention of the Council that this money be used for artificial turf, there was no discussion of the possible health problems which might be involved. It was in 2014 that concerns about the large amount of cancers in young soccer players, especially goalies ,started to hit the press. Now with the complaints of heat and abrasions by the women playing in the World Soccer Cup, there is even more cause for concern...

Why not use the [budgeted] $3,257,000 to renovate soccer fields throughout the city, by gopher-proofing with galvanized wire and re-sodding with a tough grass such as Buffalo Grass?

No one knows the possible health harm that any type of artificial turf might cause. It is known that all artificial turf materials are expensive, have costly maintenance issues, require fencing and monitoring to keep sticky drinks and material off the fields, require water to clean and cool the turf , are more abrasive and prone to infection than grass.

I would request that natural grass turf also be included in the discussion on June 15 and be an option for the commission.

I would also like to know if any public meetings are scheduled for the neighborhoods for Seaside and Admiral Kidd Parks, in addition to the one at El Dorado...It would seem these parents should be also be made aware of the possible health problems connected with artificial turf.

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At a February 23, 2015 public meeting conducted by 5th dist. Councilwoman Stacy Mungo, a City hired consultant acknowledged the controversy over "crumb rubber" but opined that roughly 60 studies he'd seen to date hadn't shown a cancer link.

Councilwoman Mungo indicated in February that there would be at least one or two more community meetings before a decision was made...but that hasn't happened (apart from the decision making Parks & Rec Commission meeting now scheduled for June 15.)

LBREPORT.com has reviewed hours of audio from the Sept. 2013 Budget Oversight Committee meeting, the City Council's Sept. 2013 budget vote, and the Council's Sept. 2014 [FY15] budget vote. At no point in any of the proceedings were potential health issues or cautions regarding operational issues disclosed by management or brought to the attention of Councilmembers. The Council votes were basically based entirely on asserted cost savings...although there is evidence that cost savings are at minimum arguable and may be illusory or (some say) more costly.

City management's memo cites cost savings in maintenance and watering costs, but those figures have been called into question. A story reported earlier this year by local NPR affiliate KPCC (89.3) states "LAUSD weighs switch from grass to artificial turf -- and water's not the biggest factor"

[KPCC report text] Natural grass fields can hold up over time when used about a half dozen times a week, Hovatter said, but artificial turf is more durable for more frequent use.

Most LAUSD middle and high school fields are in high demand each week; there’s a waiting list of outside groups, including sports leagues, that want to use public school fields during off-hours.

But replacing a natural grass field with artificial turf can cost up to $5 million, Hovatter said. So it would cost the school district over $500 million to convert 146 natural grass playing fields. Replacing the fields for wear-and-tear every 10 years would cost an additional $1 million for each field.

By comparison, it costs the school district about $250,000 to recondition a natural grass field each year, he said. That would total $36.5 million for 146 fields.

Based on cost alone, artificial turf for the 146 fields with one replacement after 10 years amounts to $730 million. Natural grass after the same period would pencil out to $365 million.

For artificial turf to make economic sense for the district, groups using the fields would need to contribute to its installation and maintenance. Hovatter said the question the district needs to ask is: "Do we have partners that are willing to pay a recapitalization cost so we can recover our actual cost?"

The district is studying the cost effectiveness of natural versus artificial fields for each campus, he said.

As for the water savings, it turns out artificial fields aren't water-free.

"You do have to water it. You have to wash it. You have to cool it, because it gets to very excessive temperatures," Hovatter said.

By way of summary, the Sept. 2013 Budget Oversight Committee discussed how much to allocate for synthetic soccer fields [in a list of items first revealed at a 3:30 p.m. meeting, not previously disclosed to the public.] Chair DeLong [who announced the list] and Committee member Lowenthal supported a management budgeted figure of just under $2 million while vice-chair O'Donnell sought a higher sum. When the DeLong-Lowenthal Committee recommendation came to the full Council barely an hour later, O'Donnell argued for increased funding for soccer fields, which the full Council ultimately increased. At some points during Council discussion, the terms soccer fields and artificial surf soccer fields appear to have been used interchangeably. This has led to some confusion over what the Council actually voted to budget.

The Council's Sept. 2013 decision was made in a budget context, not after hearing information pro/con in a policy context. In the budget context, the Council approved what city management and the Budget Oversight Committee brought to it: funding for at least three soccer fields using synthetic material.

A year later in Sept. 2014 with a new Council seated, management was explicit during budget discussions in stating that it was seeking continued authority to install synthetic soccer fields at El Dorado Park West (Studebaker Rd. north of Willow St., 5th dist.), Admiral Kidd (7th dist, WLB) and Seaside Park (1st dist. NW of 14th St. park)...and implying support for future use in other city parks.

At no point in the Sept. 2013 or Sept. 2014 Council discussions did city staff disclose any health issues or cautionary operational issues. As best we can determine, these matters have never been brought publicly to the full City Council's attention.

If LB's Parks & Rec Commission were to approve management's recommendation for "encapsulated" acrylic coated crumb rubber on Monday June 15, an appeal(s) would ultimately bring it to the full City Council for what would be its first policy discussion of health and safety matters.

LB's Parks & Recreation Commission's members are chosen by the Mayor with City Council approval. Section 902 of the City Charter provides that the Commission "shall have such exclusive authority over all leisure activities in public parks and recreational facilities, controlled or operated by the City, as may be prescribed by the City Council by ordinance; and with respect thereto shall have the following powers and duties:

a) Recommend to City Manager and City Council the acquisition of land for public parks and public recreation, the dedication of public land for public parks, the removal of public land from dedication as park land, and the acquisition of buildings, waterways, or other facilities for public recreation. (b)Recommend to the City Manager, City Council and Planning Commission the approval or rejection of plans for improvement of parkland for public recreation and for other purposes, including but not limited to buildings and other facilities, other than land and facilities within the tide and submerged lands granted to the City pursuant to Chapter 676, Statutes of 1911; Chapter 102, Statues of 1925; Chapter 157, Statutes as of 1935; interpreted by Chapter 29, Statutes of 1958, First Extraordinary Session; Chapter 138, Statutes of 1964, First Extraordinary Session; and land and facilities situated in the local coastal zone in the City. (c)Authorize the issuance of permits and agreements related to leisure activities in public parks and recreational facilities controlled or operated by the City. (d)Establish fees for public recreational programs and use of public parks and recreation facilities. (e)Perform such other duties as may be delegated by the City Council by ordinance.

As to appeals, Section 904 of the City Charter states: "The City Council shall by ordinance establish a procedure for appeal to the City Council of Commission actions relating to City sponsored programs, services and facilities. By two-thirds (2/3) vote, the City Council shall have the power on any such appeal to affirm, modify or overrule the decision of the Commission."

Developing...with further to follow on LBREPORT.com




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