NEW Guide for HOAs and Artificial Grass Published By ASGi

HOA – CID
Artificial Grass
Buyer Guide

ASGi’s recently published HOA Guideline for Artificial Grass and Synthetic Turf is a full-color downloadable PDF – This 6 page guideline is full of photos and illustrations with a focus upon How HOA Guidelines Maintain Property Value & Popular Artificial Grass Products and Up-to-date CalGreen/LEED Permeable Installation guidelines.

ASGi built this general information PDF to answer your basic questions about artificial grass and synthetic turf used for lawns, putting greens and other residential projects. HOAs and other community interest properties will often apply design guidelines, to insure that their collective standards of building excellence and product quality are met or exceeded – the ASGi Artificial Grass HOA Guide was published in collaboration with several California HOA communities and

Any HOA or CIP is welcome to use the guide as a template and adopt it for their own use. Please call [888-705-8880] or email us your request and we will send you hi-resolution files for print, of this guide, personalized with your association logo and phone number!

=== Watch a Flip-Book of the Guide! ===========

Click for FULL Screen – ESC to Close.

ASGi August 17, 2010 HOAs AB.1793, Artificial Grass, artificial turf, Artificial Turf Market, california, GREEN, hoa, synthetic grass, synthetic turf, Synthetic Turf Council, Water Savings No Comments

EPA: Recycled Crumb Rubber Infill OK
for Use with Synthetic Turf Sports Fields

http://www.epa.gov/nerl/features/tire_crumbs.html

The Use of Recycled Tire Materials on Playgrounds & Artificial Turf Fields

http://www.asgi.us/wp-admin/post.php?action=edit&post=775&message=6#post_name Posted: December 3, 2009

Downloadable Documents

Download “A Scoping-Level Field Monitoring Study of Synthetic Turf Fields and Playgrounds” (pdf, 123pp, 7.2MB)

Download a pdf file of the Tire Crumbs fact sheet. (pdf, 4pp, 29KB)

Background

Ground rubber — also called “tire crumb” or “crumb rubber” — is recovered from scrap tires or from the tire retreading process. It is used in road construction and in a number of athletic and recreational applications, including ground cover under playground equipment, running track material, and as a soil additive on sports and playing fields.

Crumb rubber is often used in artificial turf fields as “infill” between turf fibers to provide stability, uniformity and resiliency to artificial turf fields. Artificial turf was developed in the mid-1960s and has since gained widespread popularity around the country. Synthetic turf was originally used in stadiums and on athletic fields for college and professional sports teams, but now is also used in municipal parks, golf courses, playgrounds, cruise ships, and airports. There is also a growing residential market.

According to the Synthetic Turf Council, artificial turf has been installed in approximately 4,500 U.S. fields, tracks and playgrounds.

Public Concerns

Over the past several years, a number of public concerns have been raised over the use of tire crumb materials in turf fields and playgrounds. For example, parents in Colorado were concerned about children carrying home small particles of tire crumbs on their clothing. About this time, high levels of lead were detected on some artificial turf fields in New Jersey.

EPA Research

In response to these concerns, EPA developed an Agency workgroup that initiated a limited-scale scoping study to test a study protocol and monitoring methods for generating environmental data associated with the use of recycled tire material on artificial turf fields and playgrounds.

As part of this evaluation, data were collected at a limited number of sites. The full study protocol was implemented at two synthetic turf fields and one playground. Additional samples were collected at four other synthetic turf fields and a second playground. Sampling sites were located in North Carolina, Georgia, Ohio, and Maryland.

It is important to have accurate and reproducible methods for measuring environmental concentrations of the components of synthetic turf fields and playgrounds. The study protocols and the majority of the methods evaluated were found to be appropriate for characterizing concentrations of tire crumb components in the environment.

On average, the concentrations of components monitored in this study were below levels of concern; however, given the very limited nature of this study (i.e., limited number of components monitored, samples sites, and samples taken at each site) and the wide diversity of tire crumb material, it is not possible to extend the results beyond the four study sites or to reach any more comprehensive conclusions without the consideration of additional data.

In reviewing the literature, EPA believes there is no definitive study that fully addresses all of the questions regarding safety considerations associated with the use of synthetic turf and/or crumb rubber fields. As a further complication, characteristics and performance of synthetic grass blades may need to be considered separately from those of crumb rubber infill. However, both the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Centers for Disease Control recommend that young children wash their hands frequently after playing outside and always before they eat. EPA also recommends these practices.

The results from this scoping study along with results from other studies conducted by Federal, State, and local organizations, such as the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC); Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry; states including New Jersey, Connecticut, California, and New York; and New York City, will be considered by EPA to identify possible next steps to address questions from the public regarding the safety of tire crumb infill in ball fields and playgrounds.

A meeting is being planned for spring 2010 among interested federal and state agencies to share information about possible contaminant levels from tire crumb/synthetic playing surfaces and discuss whether additional research is needed.

Key Technical Findings from EPA’s Study

Key technical findings from the EPA scoping study are summarized below. It should be stressed that the fields were selected based on proximity to facilities of EPA’s National Exposure Research Laboratory. The results reported here may not be representative of environmental concentrations found at other sites.

The overall study protocol and many of the methods were found to be appropriate and could be implemented in the field. Several limitations are noted as follows:
- Collecting integrated air samples provided a high burden in terms of time and equipment.
- At any single site, there can be substantial variability in the materials used and the concentrations of contaminants measured. More work is needed to determine where to collect samples and how many samples to collect to fully characterize a given site.
- It was difficult to obtain access and permission to sample at playgrounds and on recreational fields. More work is needed to increase public and private owner participation if additional monitoring studies are to be conducted.

Methods used to measure air concentrations of particulate matter (PM) and metals were found to be reliable.
- Concentrations of PM and metals (including lead) measured in air above the turf fields were similar to background concentrations.
- Concentrations of PM and metals at the playground site with high play activity were higher than background levels.
- All PM air concentrations were well below the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for PM (150 micrograms per cubic meter). All air concentrations for lead were well below the NAAQS for lead (150 nanograms per cubic meter).

Methods used to measure volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in air were found to be reliable.
- All VOCs were measured at extremely low concentrations which is typical of ambient air concentrations.
- One VOC associated with tire crumb materials (methyl isobutyl ketone) was detected in the samples collected on one synthetic turf field but was not detected in the corresponding background sample.

Methods used to measure extractable metals from turf field blades, tire crumb materials, and turf field wipe samples were found to be reliable. However, the aggressive acid extraction procedure will likely overestimate the concentration of metals that are readily available for human uptake. Since understanding uptake is a key component in understanding risk, methods to determine bioavailable metal concentrations are still needed.
- Total extractable metal concentrations from the infill, turf blade samples and tire crumb material were variable in the samples collected both at a given site and between sites.
- The average extractable lead concentrations for turf blade, tire crumb infill, and tire crumb rubber were low. Although there are no standards for lead in recycled tire material or synthetic turf, average concentrations were well below the EPA standard for lead in soil (400 part per million).

Likewise the average extractable lead concentrations for turf field wipe samples were low. Although there are no directly comparable standards, average concentrations were well below the EPA standard for lead in residential floor dust (40 micrograms per square foot).

Additional information on the use of recycled tire materials

In the United States, a number of cities and states have engaged in varying levels of sampling, testing and evaluation of synthetic turf products.

In January 2007, the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment issued a report, Evaluation of Health Effects of Recycled Waste Tires in Playground and Track Products. The report concluded that there appeared to be little long-term risk to human health.

However, in August 2007, the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station reported the results of a small ($2,000) study it conducted to evaluate tire crumb. The laboratory concluded that “under relatively mild conditions of temperature and leaching solvent, components of crumb rubber produced from tires (i) volatilize into the vapor phase and (ii) are leached into water in contact with the crumbs.”

In June 2008, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a low-level public health advisory, due to the extensive publicity surrounding artificial turf. The Consumer Product Safety Commission investigated reports of lead contamination from artificial turf and, in July 2008, concluded that “young children are not at risk from exposure to lead in these fields.”

After a review of the literature, EPA identified a number of compounds or materials that may be found in tires, although not all are contained in every tire:

acetone
aniline
arsenic
barium
benzene
benzothiazole
cadmium
chloroethane
chromium
cobalt
copper
halogenated flame retardants
isoprene
latex
lead

manganese
mercury
methyl ethyl ketone
methyl isobutyl ketone
naphthalene
nickel
nylon
phenol
pigments
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
polyester
rayon
styrene?butadiene
toluene
trichloroethylene

Look here for other feature stories.

ASGi August 10, 2010 Crumb Rubber, EPA, Health & Environment, Infill Solutions, Lead & Heavy Metals Artificial Grass, Artificial Grass Fields, artificial turf, Artificial Turf Georgia, Artificial Turf Market, crumb rubber hazards, crumb rubber infill, EPA, Grass Surface Info, green building, hazards, lead, synthetic grass, synthetic turf No Comments

North American Artificial
Grass Market Ahead in 2009!

AMI Research

Artificial Grass Global
Market Report Published

Revised with 2009 Market Intelligence..

ARTIFICIAL GRASS DEMAND AHEAD IN 2009

AMI, Bristol, 26/04/2010– Despite the challenging economic environment global demand for artificial turf grew in 2009 according to a recently published study by leading industry consultants, Applied Market Information Ltd (AMI). The report’s author John Nash says that “Sports governing bodies, as well as local and central government saw good sense in continuing to invest in improved facilities in 2009. Most producers, with the exception of some North Americans, were quite pleased with the final outcome of 2009 despite a slow start to the artificial turf season.”

While many will remember the pitches they played on as kids and think artificial turf is a niche market, today’s reality is quite different. Gone are the hard surfaces that caused friction burns and impact injuries, and in their place are controlled slide and defined energy restitution. Changing product design has brought synthetic turf into the mainstream of surfaces used for both sports and landscaping applications. The industry now accounts for over 700,000 tonnes of product ranging from the polymers used for the grass carpet through the elastomeric rubber infill to the underlay. The market value of the grass carpet alone is estimated at €1.3 billion and is expected to exceed €2 billion in 2013.

The grass yarns are made from PE (polyethylene), PP (polypropylene) and PA (polyamide), and they are fast developing both in terms of the performance of the polymer, but also the shape of the yarns and their bonding into the backing tape, whether by SB (styrene butadiene) latex or PU (polyurethane). The infill that has become predominant is SBR (styrene butadiene rubber) sourced from grinding up and recycling car tyres, but new TPEs (thermoplastic elastomers) are being offered which address specific requirements. A more recent focus for development is the underlay, or shock pad, which is becoming increasingly important to the performance of the system as a whole.

Industry participants have been investing strongly in new products, additional capacity and the reshaping of their channels to market. Investments for instance by FieldTurf Tarkett have much reduced their reliance on outsourcing. Alongside these commercial developments, as predicted by AMI in its 2007 report, there is also substantial M&A activity as participants use mergers and acquisitions to build and reshape their businesses. The last eighteen months have seen major acquisitions involving TenCate Thiolon, TigerTurf, Shaw Industies, Sportexe and ‘private equity’ backed purchases of STI (APT), Nexcel and others.

Supply and demand in the market needs to be seen in a geographically global context partly because of the trade flows in the various components, but also because participation strategies are increasingly global in their implementation.

‘The Global Artificial Grass Market 2009’ is a detailed multi-client research report published in March 2010. For further information please contact John Nash at AMI: jsn@amiplastics.com or +44 117 924 9442.

AMI is an ASGi Charter Member and Board Advisor – Markets, Trends & Intelligence

=========================

ASGi May 5, 2010 Market Artificial Grass, Artificial Grass Association, artificial turf, Artificial Turf Georgia, Artificial Turf Market, crumb rubber infill, synthetic grass, synthetic turf, Synthetic Turf Council, united states No Comments

California Bill May VOID HOA
Bans on Artificial Grass

Calif Assembly Bill 1793 –
introduced Feb 10, 2010 –
May Help Expand Market in California

Set Example for Other States

Promotes Water-Use Efficiency & Artificial Grass Turf Use

California has set the TREND for many milestones in the artificial

grass industry – if you do business in California or support those
who do business here – please step up to the plate on the following:

Assembly Bill 1793 has been introduced to the Calif Legislature by Assembly Member Lori Saldana and we can use your support in helping this important bill pass through the process

“This bill would provide that a provision of any of the governing documents of a common interest development would be void and unenforceable if it prohibits, or includes conditions that have the effect of prohibiting, the use of artificial turf or any other synthetic surface that resembles grass.”

We ask that you either send us an email and say that you’d like to add your Company and Contact name to our letter of support

OR you can use our letter as a template and write YOUR OWN

copy of letter here:
California’s Artificial Grass Bill Overturns HOA BANS on Use
http://www.asgi.us/ab.1793/AB1793_ASGi_Letter.pdf

Please email us – ASAP if you would like to add your contact information to OUR version of this letter – send your note to: A N N I E @ A S G I . U S

ALL ASGi members are strongly encouraged to participate and will get an additional request through your membership emails.
You only need to reply once …

Thank you, in advance, for your support of this IMPORTANT BILL!

All the best
Annie Costa
Exec Director
ASGi

Questions? – Give me a call at 530-432-5851

OR Contact the Honorable Lori Saldana’s office staff directly:

Erica Costa (no relation) erica.costa@asm.ca.gov

————
Annie Costa
Executive Director
ASGi

http://www.asgi.us

Toll-Free USA 888-705-8880
Direct: 530-432-5851
Cell: 530-237-7878
FAX: 530-432-5659

Join ASGi and Support Your Industry!
http://www.asgi.us/join

ASGi January 8, 2010 AB.1793, Calif State, HOAs, Legislation, Water Savings, lawsuits AB.1793, Artificial Grass, Artificial Grass Association, Artificial Grass Fields, artificial grass install guide, Artificial Grass Lawns, artificial turf, Market, synthetic grass, synthetic turf No Comments

FIFA President States – Future Secure for Synthetic Sports Fields

SportsField Management

Synthetic Surface Update

by Suz Trusty

Research, safety and the future of artificial turf

Recent announcements have once again put synthetic field systems in the spotlight. Perhaps the most assertive comments were made by Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) president Joseph S. Blatter on a German TV show, “Inside Sport” on October 5, 2009 and rapidly spread through the worldwide sports community. An excerpt from the German newspaper, “Die Welt” reports Blatter saying, “…that artificial turf is the ‘future of football,’ as well as claiming that ‘most countries around the world will play on artificial turf one day because it can be used 24 hours a day, seven days a week.’”

PHOTOS BY STEVE TRUSTY.

More research on grooming synthetic fields will add additional data to that already compiled.

Research will assess the impact of painting markings on synthetic surfaces as compared to markings incorporated into the playing surface.

Those comments followed the report of the conclusion of a study conducted by the German Sport University of Cologne, stating that, “well-maintained artificial pitches have no measurable effect on the game.”

Expanded sports field-centered research initiatives on the U.S. side are also creating a stir. Penn State has teamed with FieldTurf in a five-year commitment to sports surface research. Dr. Andy McNitt, associate professor of soil science for Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, will serve as director of the new Center for Sports Surface Research.

The University of Tennessee (UT) has partnered with AstroTurf to create the Center for Safer Athletic Fields, geared to research comparing natural grass playing surfaces to synthetic turf systems. Key researchers for this center are Dr. John Sorochan, associate professor and turfgrass specialist with the department of plant sciences in the University of Tennessee College of Agricultural Science and Natural Resources, and Dr. Jim Brosnan, assistant professor and turfgrass specialist.

McNitt says the Penn State research will center on synthetic and natural turf systems, primarily outdoors, but with indoor study as research directs, and expanding into other sports surfaces, initially including track and basketball. The University of Tennessee will research outdoor systems, according to Sorochan.

Both centers are open to take on other partners in the future as they seek to broaden the research to explore all aspects that impact the surfaces and the athletes. Both will test a myriad of different synthetics, those commercially available and those in development. Sorochan says, “For natural turf, we’ll use five different rootzones with the transition zone grasses: blue, rye and bermuda.” Though Penn State is in the cool-season zone, McNitt says, “We do have some bermuda plots installed here that are doing well. Our window of testing is just shorter.”

Hot topics

Heat is an ongoing issue. Though it’s not a factor when it’s cloudy or during the evenings, it’s fairly well documented that, on sunny days, synthetic surfaces get significantly hotter than natural grass. The heat goes through the shoe and into the feet and must be dissipated. While efforts are ongoing in alerting trainers, coaches, athletes and parents to monitor this, research will focus on an effective way to control it.

Alternative infill products, such as this natural infill, will undergo testing for multiple factors.

Alternatives in infill will continue to be researched, with the heat issue one part of that equation. Additional testing will look at playability, hardness, wearability, off-gassing, leaching and how the various materials hold up over time.

Safety is a top topic, with both centers focusing on human movement and how the athlete and playing surface interact. McNitt says, “Traditionally, the kinesiologists’ research has gone to the bottom of the shoe, and our studies have gone to the bottom of the shoe. We’ll be wiring athletes and having them perform maneuvers and working with cadavers in similar studies to see the actions and reactions and gauge the effect of varying surfaces on different joints with different types of shoes and cleats. The challenge will be trying to limit all the other variables: temperature, moisture, all the maintenance procedures that impact natural turf and those with synthetics, such as the age of the system, the density of the infill and whether it’s been groomed recently.”

Some of the research will key on the environmental impacts for all types of surfaces, with many aspects to explore, including leachate, carbon sequestration, ecology and recycling. Research will include further study into off gassing, the release of certain volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by components of the synthetic systems and the crumb rubber.

Another hot topic is wear. Sorochan says, “We’ll be simulating multiple levels of wear from one sport to multiple sport fields, through all the levels of athlete size and skill, from premium game-only fields to daily use fields. We’ll factor in non-sports events, too. While we can’t simulate every condition, the transition zone does provide some of the extremes.”

Researchers will continue to study synthetic field system grooming techniques, timing and frequency under various conditions and field use levels.

Performance is a major issue, from the point of construction or installation throughout the life of the field. This encompasses multiple areas of research from the natural or synthetic materials used, construction and/or installation procedures and long-term maintenance.

Accessing the data

University-based research includes recording testing results with the data available industrywide. McNitt says Penn State has been tracking the results of grooming on synthetic surfaces for seven years, with all but the current year’s data posted on the Web site: www.ssrc.psu.edu.

Quantifiable research data can address issues that spark widespread public and media attention, such as the concerns about MRSA and synthetic turf. Two Penn State studies: A Survey of Microbial Populations in Infilled Synthetic Turf Fields, and Survival of Staphylococcus aureus on Synthetic Turf, also are posted on the Web site.

ASTM standards

The issue of lead content in synthetic turf fibers prompted action in multiple sectors, including field owners and producers, testing laboratories, university researchers and governmental regulatory agencies. Initially, there was confusion over testing procedures, as different results occurred from different methods. Additionally, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission asked the industry to remove all intentionally added lead from turf fibers. Subsequently, ASTM International formed a subcommittee to address these issues and has issued a new standard: ASTM F2765, Specification for Total Lead Content in Synthetic Turf Fibers. ASTM announced another task group has been formed to “address the environmental and health issues related to synthetic turf infill materials.

Moving forward

As research and testing move forward, and standards and certification set industry benchmarks, innovation is sure to follow. Researchers expect significant data to become available early in the process. Industry suppliers anticipate the ability to use this data to identify key areas of performance and make ongoing adaptations to integrate them into product development. Sports field managers will gain a greater body of knowledge for comparison of all sports field systems to more effectively assist their facilities in making decisions on new fields and retaining top performance on existing fields.

The author is a contributing editor for SportsField Management.

http://www.sportsfieldmanagementmagazine.com/article.php?id=4474

ASGi December 10, 2009 ASTM, Artificial Grass, CPSC, Crumb Rubber, ESTO, FIFA, Field Related Info, Heat, Market, Parks & Rec, Schools - Public & Private Artificial Grass, Artificial Grass Fields, artificial turf, Artificial Turf Georgia, Artificial Turf Market, ASTM, CPSC, EPA, Field Related Info, FIFA, Heat, lead, MRSA, synthetic grass, synthetic turf, Synthetic Turf Council No Comments

You’d Never Know It’s A Fake

Image via Wikipedia – monofilament fibers with
superfill an alternative infill to crumb rubber

Pick any suburb, any Sunday afternoon, and the sound you’ll mostly likely hear is the irritating buzz of lawn mowers, blowers and other gardening power tools. Yesterday I watched the guy across the street use a blower to blow every leaf in front of his house over to a stretch of curb in front of his neighbor’s house–an unbelievable waste of time and energy–polluting the air with a cacophony of the most grating buzzes and whirring. Who can enjoy a quiet afternoon when every dad on the block is competing to have the most manicured lawn?

And that’s just the noise. All of our lawns should be brown. We are under severe water restrictions here in Southern California and in many other parts of the country. Don’t even get me started on the weed killer. I’ve reached the point where Astroturf is actually starting to look good. And I’m not alone.

With water emergencies and mandatory restrictions in place in southern California, Texas, Florida, Georgia and other water-starved areas, fake grass is starting to look a lot more attractive to homeowners than it once was. In fact, it’s starting to look more attractive–period. Suburbanites are increasingly opting for synthetic grass, rather than resign themselves to a dull brown lawn (although the dandelions seem to able to survive no matter what) of the real stuff.

Synthetic turf came on the scene much fanfare in the 1960s, but it wasn’t until the 1980s, when the industry introduced a vastly improved second-generation product, that it gained more widespread popularity. According to the Association of Synthetic Grass Installers, a trade association based in Sacramento, sales of artificial turf for landscapes and putting greens–a category that includes residential lawns– landscape use has grown 35% annually for the past five years. [overall market growth (which would include sports fields) has been a steady 20% per year] States where sales are highest are Georgia, Florida, Texas, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Washington, Oregon and, of course, California. Environmentalists were in favor of the water savings resulting from a lawn of artificial grass, but worried about toxic chemicals contained in it, like lead. (In April, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission looked into the possible health hazards of lead in artificial turf installed at schools, parks and stadiums across the country.) But the industry insists synthetic turf is safe and as demand for the stuff grows, the more stylish it becomes.

Manufacturers have heard consumers and are working to make artificial grass far more real looking and esthetically pleasing. They now offer complimentary colors for the natural grasses of different regions. In Southern California, for example, a lighter, Kelly green sells well; in Florida and Georgia, a dusty green-gray is popular. The grass is less shiny than what you’re used to seeing on the sports field and now there’s even a new product–called “thatch”–to help the blades stand up straighter.

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