We, the concerned students, families, and other community members of Montclair, NJ, urge the Town Council to reject a moratorium or ban on turf fields in Montclair. Simply put, without turf fields, Montclair cannot safely accommodate the level of demand there is for athletics in the town. 

Here are some key facts supporting this petition:

1. The Montclair Town Council, with virtually no notice, added to their October 8, 2024 agenda a resolution establishing a moratorium on the installation of artificial turf on playing and recreational fields. They did this without consulting key constituents, including students, families, coaches, club teams, and stakeholders like the BOE and MKA. The agenda listed the resolution as a discussion item only, NOT an item to be voted on at the October 8th meeting. 

2. Despite this, as midnight approached and the council chambers were nearly empty, Councilor Aminah Toler introduced the resolution and requested that the Council suddenly and without notice vote on the moratorium, despite the fact that the resolution was supposed to be a discussion item only. Councilor Toler was joined by Councilor Carmel Loughman who expressed a desire to ban artificial turf. 

3. Fortunately, Councilor Eileen Birmingham, Councilor Erik D'Amato, Councilor Susan Shin Andersen, and Councilor Rahum Williams noted that it was disrespectful to suddenly and without notice vote on the resolution without engaging with and hearing from other community members and the BOE. 

4. It is vital for our voices to be heard and not suppressed by last-minute attempts to pass moratoriums or bans on turf. Athletics represent a huge and important part of the fabric of the Montclair community and need to be supported. 

5. For years, our student athletes have suffered brain injuries, torn knees and ankles, knocked out teeth, surgery, extensive physical therapy, and fear from playing on Montclair’s poorly maintained and dangerous dirt and grass fields. Last fall alone, two high school soccer players playing on the Hillside grass field suffered serious injuries, including a completely torn ACL, a torn meniscus, an MCL sprain, and other injuries, requiring surgery and many months of painful rehabilitation. For those of us who have watched our children play sports in Montclair, these unacceptably dangerous grass fields are the norm given the reality of budget constraints.

6. Turf fields play an extremely important role in keeping our child athletes safer in high-speed high school sports. It’s why all MHS varsity field sports – boys soccer, girls soccer, boys lacrosse, girls lacrosse, field hockey, baseball, softball, boys football, and girls flag football – play on turf. It’s why all varsity field sports in a number of our neighboring towns play on turf. It’s why renowned colleges and universities – with distinguished scientists and medical schools cited by Montclair’s turf opponents – play on turf. 

7. In addition, the demand for field and playing time far exceeds the capacity of existing fields, and this problem would worsen with a ban on turf. Montclair has not had, does not have, and will never have the budget and maintenance capacity to maintain grass fields the way they are maintained at the collegiate and professional levels. The result is that fields become run down, unsafe, unplayable, and unable to accommodate the countless hours of play required by so many teams in Montclair. These requirements for maintaining the grass baseball field MSU previously had at Yogi Berra Stadium demonstrate the overwhelming cost and effort that caused MSU to install turf at Yogi Berra this year, just like thousands and thousands of other schools and communities.

8. At the October 8th meeting, Councilor Toler irresponsibly linked turf fields to autism even though there is absolute NO scientific evidence to draw such a conclusion. In fact, despite the many cherry-picked studies and anecdotes cited by Montclair’s turf field opponents – and the out-of-town advocates they’ve recruited to speak at public meetings – the science is inconclusive about turf fields, studies contradict each other, and no study has provided a comprehensive review of sports injuries on turf versus natural grass. In fact, Mt. Sinai Children's Environmental Health Center "recognizes the need for further scientific study," merely cites "potential health effects” of turf fields, and acknowledges that “studies to assess the safety of artificial turf are ongoing and inconclusive.” In other words, according to CEHC, risk from turf is unproven. 

9. Despite false claims that the science is conclusive, a February 2023 NJDEP memo shared that “there is limited data available to make a conclusion about the release of PFAS from artificial turf” and that “the types of PFAS that are present and the potential to have those chemicals released to the environment has not been established.” The NJDEP’s position is consistent with a recent Washington Post article, which notes, “there’s no reliable evidence showing that PFAS in turf pose a risk.”

10. Though Councilor Toler and Councilor Loughman support a ban on turf, they are not seeking moratoriums or bans on other products containing PFAS, including cell phones, computers, other electronics, car engines and brakes, tires, electric car batteries, children’s car seats, solar panels, paint, dishwasher and laundry detergent, other cleaning products, umbrellas, tents, clothing, toilet paper, shampoo, contact lenses, dental floss, nail polish, eye makeup, carpets, pizza boxes, candy wrappers, sticky notes, mattress covers, common furniture, fish and dairy products, and others. 

11. At the recent Town Council meeting, anti-turf proponents jeered and yelled at community members who spoke against the moratorium. This happened days after Woodman’s new turf field was vandalized. This divisive behavior is consistent with the hostile and aggressive tactics Woodman neighbors displayed as they attacked student speakers and yelled to 12-year-olds that they would become infertile from the Woodman turf field. 

We refuse to be bullied. 

Though one Woodman neighbor relentlessly emails elected officials and regularly posts fear-inducing cherry-picked anecdotes on social media, we ask the Town Council to refrain from approving a moratorium or ban on turf fields. Make no mistake, that Woodman neighbor and other proponents of this proposed moratorium have made very clear their intentions to replace ALL turf fields in Montclair with grass fields.

The moratorium being pushed by Councilor Toler and Councilor Loughman is just a first step in dismantling the safe turf fields used by boys soccer, girls soccer, boys lacrosse, girls lacrosse, field hockey, baseball, softball, boys football, and girls flag football. This will make playing conditions less safe, further endanger our student athletes, and dramatically reduce field availability and playing time, which already are too strained. 

To support this petition and reject the moratorium and ban on turf fields in Montclair, we kindly request that you sign above. Together, let's ensure the playing safety and vital athletic experiences in our town!

Thank you for your support!