Parents Petition to Stop Hazardous Astroturf at Santa Monica Elementary Schools

Northeast Neighbors captioned this photo "It appears robots are safe on synthetic turf made by TenCate. Children are not."

May 9, 2025 - An email sent out from Northeast Neighbors requests parents and other residents to protest the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District's plan to remove natural grass at two elementary schools and replace it with "synthetic turf" made in Dubai.

"TenCate makes a product in Dubai they call "sustainable synthetic grass." Santa Monica-Malibu school district has chosen to install it at Franklin and Grant elementary schools. TenCate claims their plastic grass is "ecologically friendly." Parents aren't buying it," writes NE Neighbors president Tricia Crane. "Battle lines are being drawn. On the one side is the school district pushing forward with a plan to remove natural grass sports fields at all elementary schools in Santa Monica. On the other side are parents of young children who are becoming aware of research on how dangerous exposure to synthetic turf is for children. Sen. Ben Allen and Melanie Luthern Allen are among the Santa Monica parents who support efforts to stop the Franklin Plan and the installation of synthetic turf at their child's school."

The link to the petition against this change is https://chng.it/NkyfQYmmy7. The text of the petition is below:

To the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD):

We, the undersigned, urge the SMMUSD to reconsider the plan to install synthetic turf fields, specifically at Franklin Elementary School and other district schools. We request a halt to these plans and advocate for the preservation of communal green spaces.

Our key concerns include:

Protect Shared Green Space: We strongly oppose shrinking our community's green space by downsizing it and replacing it with plastic turf. Plastic turf would mean no more movie nights or school camp-outs. No picnics or community events on the field. Our natural grass is not just a sports field, it's a multipurpose green space enjoyed by the students for a variety of activities during recess, families during school activities, and the whole community on weekends.

Health Risks & Toxic Chemicals: Pediatric environmental health institutions have expressed serious concerns about long-term exposure to known carcinogens, endocrine disruptors, and other chemicals in plastic turf itself and products required for its maintenance, especially for children. Even turf that claims to be "nontoxic" is made of plastic that breaks down into microplastics that will end up in our children's bodies.

Heat Risks: While natural grass can be up to 25° cooler than ambient temperatures, synthetic turf can be 40°-70° hotter. This could be uncomfortable on an average day, and cause burns, heat exhaustion, and dehydration on a hot day. As temperatures rise due to climate change, we should be increasing – not decreasing – our cooling green spaces.

Environmental Impact: Plastic turf is non-biodegradable and increases urban heat island effects. As a fossil-fuel based product the entire lifecycle of plastic products, from extraction, manufacturing, use, and disposal, produce emissions that contribute to climate change. During its active life it sheds chemicals and microplastics into the environment, polluting soil, drinking water, and the ocean. Cleaning plastic turf also requires large amounts of potable water. And although the District claims that the TenCate plastic grass it plans to use is recyclable, it doesn't allay concerns about microplastic shedding and increased production of plastic.

Financial Costs: Installing plastic turf requires a large up-front capital investment, maintenance is costly, and it must be replaced after only 8-10 years. The long-term costs of synthetic turf are at best equal to, and can exceed, those of well-maintained natural grass.

There is a safe and affordable alternative:

Natural Alternative: Natural grass fields are cooler, support biodiversity, absorb carbon dioxide, and provide a safer playing surface. They are more inviting to kids of all kinds to participate in activities of all kinds. Organic and drought-tolerant playing fields are available and cost competitive.

Convert Hard Surfaces: To address concerns about overplayed fields, we urge the District to consider converting additional hard surfaces such as asphalt to green space, as LAUSD is currently doing district-wide.

We urge the SMMUSD to protect our children and our community by preserving our community's green spaces and maintaining natural grass fields.