We may have stopped Moreland City Council from rolling out synthetic grass at Hosken Reserve for now, but public spaces all over Victoria are at risk of being converted to synthetic surfaces. With temperatures rising every year, converting green space to synthetic will have disastrous effects on our neighbourhoods for years to come. Please sign this petition, organised by Sweltering Cities, asking Victoria's Minister for Suburban Development to put a stop to the use of synthetic turf in public spaces.

Please share the Sweltering Cities Turf Out Fake Grass petition with your networks.

You can read more about the Sweltering Cities Campaign to Turf Out Fake Grass here: https://swelteringcities.org/2022/04/04/turfing-out-fake-grass-resources/

Urban heat islands caused by use of synthetic and concrete can put lives at risk.

Do you know anyone living in Sunshine, St Albans, Glenroy, Coburg, Preston, Reservoir, Clayton and Dandenong? Researchers at Monash University have produced a heat vulnerability map for Melbourne that identifies these areas as some of the city’s most at-risk suburbs.

Professor Nigel Tapper said “Our research found a clear association between suburbs with extreme heat vulnerability and the number of hospital emergency visits or ambulance call-outs on extremely hot days.” Professor Tapper said heatwaves were a major cause of death in Australia with 374 deaths associated with Melbourne’s heatwave in January 2009. 

Its time to use common sense and #TurfOutFakeGrass - using modern turf management techniques and storm-water irrigation (like we have at Hosken Reserve) we can support sports and leisure activities without putting lives and health at risk.

Please sign and share the Sweltering Cities petition today!