“Crumb rubber” proposed for use in sports fields raises worries

EDMONDS — A nonprofit that contributed $2.5 million to build new sports fields at the former Woodway High School plans to explore possible health issues related to material used in the artificial turf.

The Verdant Health Commission is the largest funding source in the first phase of what is envisioned as a $12 million project. Eventually, it will include a walking track, resurfaced tennis and basketball courts and four year-round turf fields that can be used for soccer and baseball. It could take three to five years to fully complete the project.

The Edmonds School Board is scheduled to make a decision on the project at a meeting Tuesday. Construction is expected to get under way by the end of May or early June, according to the school district.

The president of Verdant’s board, Fred Langer, sent an email to the Edmonds School District this week, saying that the five-member board would like to explore possible health effects from the so-called “crumb rubber” material used in the artificial turf “out of an abundance of caution.”

In an interview, Langer, an attorney, said some people here and around the country suggest that the rubber material, made from recycled tires, could expose children to volatile organic hydrocarbon vapor.

Hydrocarbon vapor is emitted by a variety of products, including copiers and printers, glues, adhesives, paints and cleaning supplies, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. In high enough concentrations, the vapor can cause symptoms such as headaches and dizziness and can cause cancer in humans.

A number of studies have looked at artificial fields as potentially hazardous, including one by the EPA.

The tiny rubber particles embedded in synthetic turf can be inhaled or swallowed and might affect the lead levels in children, Langer said. However, “I don’t know that it’s significant.”

The Verdant board plans to review the issue at its May 27 meeting. The board could consider granting an additional $60,000 to $70,000 to substitute organic materials such as coconut fiber and cork, Langer said.

The crumb rubber that the school district has proposed using on the fields is the same used at Husky Stadium and CenturyLink Field in Seattle, Langer said.

Verdant wanted to help fund the sports fields because the organization is concerned with sedentary lifestyles, particularly among children, he said.

The Edmonds School District conducted its own review of the topic. It included a January letter from the Connecticut Department of Public Health, which has studied the matter itself. The Connecticut agency said it didn’t find large amounts of vapor or particles released from the fields, or an elevated cancer risk.

Nick Brossoit, superintendent of the Edmonds School District, responded to Langer in an email. He said the school board “takes seriously the health and safety of all students.” The board reviewed the issue of turf safety during a study session April 21. A report for the school board by an industrial hygienist said that research by academic, federal and state governments “has unequivocally failed to find any link between synthetic turf and cancer.”

Among other findings, the report cited a 2009 study by New York state Department of Environmental Conservation and Department of Health, which found that the levels of chemicals in the air at synthetic turf fields “do not raise a significant health concern.”

Verdant is an outgrowth of the former Stevens Hospital in Edmonds. In 2010, Swedish Health Services signed an agreement to lease the building, administer the hospital and make annual lease payments to the hospital district. In turn, the five-member former hospital board formed a nonprofit using money from the lease payments to pay for programs to promote health and wellness in south Snohomish County.

Langer served on the hospital board and now is chairman of Verdant’s board. “This is the biggest hot-button issue there’s been in the 17 years I’ve been on the board,” he said of the turf questions.

Langer said his own son has played soccer on crumb-rubber fields for years. “If it turns out these things are not OK, I want to be part of changing it,” he said. “But I don’t want to presuppose what we’ll do.”

The first part of the athletic fields project, installation of two turf fields, is being paid for by $500,000 contributions each from the city of Edmonds and the school district, $750,000 in state money and $2.5 million from Verdant.

Some neighbors have objected to the project, launching a Web page to publicize their concerns, which include diminishing open space in a city with little remaining.

“It’s really a unique, beautiful place,” Kate Smith said of the grassy fields surrounding the school. Classes often use the forest and fields surrounding what is now Edmonds Heights, an alternative school, for science study, she said. “You see the birds feeding all over the fields,” Smith said. “It’s an important part of that ecosystem.”

Carrie Hite, who directs the parks, recreation and cultural service department for the city of Edmonds, said development of a sports complex has been talked about since 2001. The city and school district worked to develop a plan for it but lacked money until last year.

Edmonds Mayor Dave Earling asked the Snohomish Health District to take a look at the issue of potential health risks. Dr. Gary Goldbaum, who heads the public health agency, responded: “At this time the science suggests to me that there are no significant health risks” from crumb rubber used in artificial fields.

Sharon Salyer; 425-339-3486; salyer@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Everett mall renderings from Brixton Capital. (Photo provided by the City of Everett)
Topgolf at the Everett Mall? Mayor’s hint still unconfirmed

After Cassie Franklin’s annual address, rumors circled about what “top” entertainment tenant could be landing at Everett Mall.

Everett
Everett man sentenced to 3 years of probation for mutilating animals

In 2022, neighbors reported Blayne Perez, 35, was shooting and torturing wildlife in north Everett.

Dorothy Crossman rides up on her bike to turn in her ballot  on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett leaders plan to ask voters for property tax increase

City officials will spend weeks hammering out details of a ballot measure, as Everett faces a $12.6 million deficit.

Starbucks employee Zach Gabelein outside of the Mill Creek location where he works on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024 in Mill Creek, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mill Creek Starbucks votes 21-1 to form union

“We obviously are kind of on the high of that win,” store bargaining delegate Zach Gabelein said.

Lynnwood police respond to a collision on highway 99 at 176 street SW. (Photo provided by Lynnwood Police)
Police: Teen in stolen car flees cops, causes crash in Lynnwood

The crash blocked traffic for over an hour at 176th Street SW. The boy, 16, was arrested on felony warrants.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Imagine Children's Museum's incoming CEO, Elizabeth "Elee" Wood. (Photo provided by Imagine Children's Museum)
Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett to welcome new CEO

Nancy Johnson, who has led Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett for 25 years, will retire in June.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.