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Effects of crumb rubber “as negligible as the effect of ingesting grilled foods”

Effects of crumb rubber “as negligible as the effect of ingesting grilled foods”

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Dr. Michel D’Hooghe, Chairman of the FIFA Medical Committee, has released a letter regarding possible exposure to crumb rubber in artificial turf fields, rendering the effects negligible.

During a recent FIFA Medical Committee meeting in mid-March, the issue of potential cancer risks from exposure to crumb rubber was heavily deliberated.

The initial issue with crumb rubber emerged after several high-profile articles surfaced, stipulating that there may be a link between the crumb rubber particles known as SBR, or Styrene Butadiene Rubber, and the occurrence of cancer in athletes routinely exposed to these surfaces. Consequently, an open letter about SBR was published.

Based on studies showing little to no correlation between athletes that contracted cancer and SBR, FIFA reiterated its stance on crumb rubber before the Women’s World Cup in 2015, played on an artificial turf field supplied by Act Global and its Canadian partner Carpell.

An increase in coverage of the case for crumb rubber in 2016 prompted the European Chemicals Agency, or ECHA, to issue a statement earlier this year that found “at most, a very low level of concern from exposure to recycled rubber granules.” Previous findings by Van Rooj and Jongeneelen in 2010 concluded that “if there is any exposure, then the uptake is very limited and within the range of uptake of PAH from environmental sources and/or diet.” Additionally, a study from New Jersey’s State Medical School indicated that health risks to children and adults from extensive contact with crumb rubber ranged from negligible to none (Pavilonis et al. 2014).

In the letter, FIFA recognizes that while it will never be possible to disregard the risk or prove it wholly negative, “the newer studies have confirmed the previous findings that there is no evidence of link between contracting cancer and playing on artificial turf with SBR infill.”

As always, FIFA will continue to monitor the developments within the scientific debate on crumb rubber, and will consider any future findings.

 

About Act Global
Act Global is a world leader in synthetic turf technology, with manufacturing facilities on three continents and sales in more than 80 countries. The company carries a full range of products for sports (Xtreme Turf, UBU and Xtreme Grass), landscaping (Xtreme Lawn and Turfscape), aviation (AvTurf) and land reclamation (LiteEarth). Act Global’s UBU brand is known for providing “Ground Gear for Athletes” to 19 NFL fields and numerous colleges. Venues that have utilized turf with the UBU brand include MetLife Stadium, Paul Brown Stadium, Mercedes-Benz Superdome, U.S. Bank Stadium and NRG Stadium. Act Global is also a FIFA Preferred Producer for Football Turf, Synthetic Turf Council Certified Manufacturer, World Rugby Preferred Turf Producer, FIH Preferred Supplier, and holds ISO 9001 Certification. To learn more about Act Global visit http://www.actglobal.com.


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Effects of crumb rubber “as negligible as the effect of ingesting grilled foods”

New Installation: Arnold O. Beckman High School, Irvine, CA

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Together with our California partner KYA, Act Global has completed another beautiful synthetic turf installation on the Arnold O. Beckman High School campus.

The first installation at Beckman was completed in 2016. The 272,000 square foot practice field is over 3 football fields in size. Its primary uses are softball, baseball, soccer, football, and men’s & women’s lacrosse. The field system consists of standard regulation crushed rock with CMS tiles on top and 1/2 gauge KYA Championship turf (manufactured by Act Global) with mixed infill.

The newest installation, completed in February 2017, is a 96,928 square foot field with football, soccer and boys’ & girls’ lacrosse. KYA repaired the existing track, then applied a full resurface to bring it back to life. The football field has upgraded irrigation, standard regulation crushed rock with CMS tiles and KYA Premier turf (manufactured by Act Global) with 1/4 gauge stitch and mixed infill.

CMS tiles are an interlocking system that allow high water volumes to pass through and flow underneath, therefore protecting the integrity of the turf and increasing playability during or after rain.

The Beckman fields were installed to provide better playability and more game time on the field, which was a huge factor with their previous natural grass fields.

About Act Global
Act Global is a world leader in synthetic turf technology, with manufacturing facilities on three continents and sales in more than 80 countries. The company carries a full range of products for sports (Xtreme Turf, UBU and Xtreme Grass), landscaping (Xtreme Lawn), aviation (AvTurf) and land reclamation (LiteEarth). Act Global’s UBU brand is known for providing “Ground Gear for Athletes” to 19 NFL fields and numerous colleges. Venues that have utilized turf with the UBU brand include MetLife Stadium, Paul Brown Stadium, Mercedes-Benz Superdome, U.S. Bank Stadium and NRG Stadium. Act Global is also a FIFA Preferred Producer for Football Turf, Synthetic Turf Council Certified Manufacturer, World Rugby Preferred Turf Producer, FIH Preferred Supplier, and holds ISO 9001 Certification. To learn more about Act Global visit http://www.actglobal.com.


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Effects of crumb rubber “as negligible as the effect of ingesting grilled foods”

New Installation: ANFA Luis Hernan Alvarez Stadium

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IMG_2761Act Global has installed yet another high-quality Xtreme Turf field in Chile.

The ANFA Luis Hernan Alvarez Stadium was installed last month in the municipality of Curico, Chile. The 96,875 sqft (9,000 sm) pitch features our FIFA-recommended Xtreme Turf DX60 product.

Thanks to the ANFA (Asociacion Nacional de Futbol Amateur de Chile, or Chile Soccer Federation), the municipality of Curico received the new pitch along with administration and maintenance for the next 20 years. The stadium opted for synthetic grass after having a natural grass field for many years, realizing that synthetic turf requires much less maintenance and holds up better than natural grass year-round.

The field was installed by Act Global’s Chilean partner Sociedad Constructora Ferrol Proyectos Limitada. Andres Uribe Otero, director of Ferrol, is excited that ANFA opted for a synthetic turf pitch. “I am proud to serve the local community with the installation of this brand-new field,” said Uribe. “I believe this will help sustain the efforts of the ANFA to provide quality turf pitches all across Chile and its various climates, from arid northern areas to the wet areas of the south.”

About Act Global
Act Global is a world leader in synthetic turf technology, with manufacturing facilities on three continents and sales in more than 80 countries. The company carries a full range of products for sports (Xtreme Turf, UBU and Xtreme Grass), landscaping (Xtreme Lawn), aviation (AvTurf) and land reclamation (LiteEarth). Act Global’s UBU brand is known for providing “Ground Gear for Athletes” to 19 NFL fields and numerous colleges. Venues that have utilized turf with the UBU brand include MetLife Stadium, Paul Brown Stadium, Mercedes-Benz Superdome, U.S. Bank Stadium and NRG Stadium. Act Global is also a FIFA Preferred Producer for Football Turf, Synthetic Turf Council Certified Manufacturer, World Rugby Preferred Turf Producer, FIH Preferred Supplier, and holds ISO 9001 Certification. To learn more about Act Global visit http://www.actglobal.com.


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Effects of crumb rubber “as negligible as the effect of ingesting grilled foods”

70,000 birds killed for aviation safety – AvTurf can keep them alive

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BirdsThis past January, the Huffington Post released an article about the ever-growing number of bird strikes, and the New York-area airports’ solution to reduce that number.

The article states nearly 70,000 birds have been killed in a bid to make flight paths safer for New York City-area planes – and those aren’t numbers from bird strikes. According to statistics compiled by the Associated Press, the deliberate killings actually increased the amount of actual bird strikes, although the number of birds killed because of strikes has dropped slightly.

Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger’s notorious emergency landing of Flight 1549 in the Hudson River prompted the mass slaughter of six different bird species. Regardless of the reasoning behind it, people advocating for the safety of the birds are begging for a fix.

“There has to be a long-term solution that doesn’t rely so extensively on killing birds, and also keeps us safe in the sky,” said Jeffrey Kramer of the group GooseWatch NYC. Also suggested – better radar systems to detect problematic flocks.

Bird strikes are just one of the hazards that impact airport runways and taxiways. Installing AvTurf can help reduce and eliminate these hazards, while providing a clean, green and low-maintenance surface area. The patented aviation turf prevents wildlife from nesting and burrowing in and around the grass shoulders of the taxiways, and keeping the wildlife as far from the airport grounds as possible will ensure the safety of animals and air passengers alike. Bird strikes cost the aviation industry $1.2 billion per year, and AvTurf creates an environment free of food, water and shelter to reduce the potential for bird strikes, therefore saving the aviation industry as much money as possible.

Along with wildlife management, AvTurf also enhances visual recognition of runways for pilots approaching runways and is an erosion-resistant way to create a stable area for taxiways and shoulders.

About Act Global
Act Global is a world leader in synthetic turf technology, with manufacturing facilities on three continents and sales in more than 80 countries. The company carries a full range of products for sports (Xtreme Turf, UBU and Xtreme Grass), landscaping (Xtreme Lawn), aviation (AvTurf) and land reclamation (LiteEarth). Act Global’s UBU brand is known for providing “Ground Gear for Athletes” to 19 NFL fields and numerous colleges. Venues that have utilized turf with the UBU brand include MetLife Stadium, Paul Brown Stadium, Mercedes-Benz Superdome, U.S. Bank Stadium and NRG Stadium. Act Global is also a FIFA Preferred Producer for Football Turf, Synthetic Turf Council Certified Manufacturer, World Rugby Preferred Turf Producer, FIH Preferred Supplier, and holds ISO 9001 Certification. To learn more about Act Global visit http://www.actglobal.com.


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Effects of crumb rubber “as negligible as the effect of ingesting grilled foods”

ECHA: Keep playing on synthetic turf fields

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crumb-rubber-infillOn Tuesday, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) issued a new report that “found no reason to advise people against playing sports on synthetic turf containing recycled rubber granules as infill material.”

A letter from the Synthetic Turf Council summarized the study, referring back to June of last year when the European Commission asked the ECHA to evaluate any risk to the general population, including children, professional players and workers installing or maintaining the synthetic turf fields infilled with recycled crumb rubber. According to the letter, the ECHA found that “the concern for players and workers for lifetime cancer is very low, for metals is negligible, and for phthalates, benzothiazole and methyl isobutyl ketone there are no concern.” The study’s results are consistent with those found in the recent National Institute for Public Health and the Environment’s Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (Netherlands) and Washington State studies.

Synthetic turf and crumb rubber by the numbers

  • By 2020, it is estimated that 21,000 full-size pitches and about 72,000 minipitches will exist in the European Union.
  • Based on industry estimates, the quantity of crumb rubber infill used on European sports fields is about 80,000 to 130,000 tons per year.
  • There are over 5,000 synthetic turf pitches in the United Kingdom.
  • Crumb rubber granules are by far the most common form used in synthetic turf installations in the European Union. In some EU countries, crumb rubber is used in over 95% of all fields.

Rubber granules used in artificial turf continue to be investigated in the EU and elsewhere. The United States’ Environmental Protection Agency is expected to produce its report on “Recycled Tire Crumb Used on Playing Fields” in late 2017.

About Act Global
Act Global is a world leader in synthetic turf technology, with manufacturing facilities on three continents and sales in more than 80 countries. The company carries a full range of products for sports (Xtreme Turf, UBU and Xtreme Grass), landscaping (Xtreme Lawn), aviation (AvTurf) and land reclamation (LiteEarth). Act Global’s UBU brand is known for providing “Ground Gear for Athletes” to 19 NFL fields and numerous colleges. Venues that have utilized turf with the UBU brand include MetLife Stadium, Paul Brown Stadium, Mercedes-Benz Superdome, U.S. Bank Stadium and NRG Stadium. Act Global is also a FIFA Preferred Producer for Football Turf, Synthetic Turf Council Certified Manufacturer, World Rugby Preferred Turf Producer, FIH Preferred Supplier, and holds ISO 9001 Certification. To learn more about Act Global visit http://www.actglobal.com.