Foster’s Daily Democrat has reported on the plan to replace Dover High School’s natural grass football field with an artificial field from FieldTurf with encapsulated tire crumb rubber infill. It was added to the school budget and proposed to be completed by spring 2019. Foster's states that, “The new artificial field will remain in the same spot as the current grass field and will cost around $1 million.”

In February 2019 the DHS & Regional CTC JBC voted unanimously to put the project on hold because they determined that they did not have enough money in the budget to move forward.

The School Board voted to approve a capital improvements project request for a "Turf Field and Track Replacement" for FY 2026 in September 2019 for $2 million. A Dover High School Athletic Complex JBC was formed in January 2024.

“The scope of work for the Dover High School project will need to be defined before the city releases a request for proposals, which (JBC Chair Fergus) Cullen expects will occur in the fall. Much of the capital improvement project will be funded through a bond, and Cullen projects the entire project could fall between the $5 million to $8 million range.” - Foster's Daily Democrat - February, 2024

⚠️ In November of 2024, the estimated cost of the project increased to $20.5 million according to numbers shared by the construction manager.

The engineers hired for the project, Tighe & Bond are now suggesting that we add up to two synthetic fields. A decision on field surface will be made by the JBC. 

Tighe & Bond are also making promises about recycling, and PFAS-free synthetic turf, but we know that these claims are false due to the experiences of other communities who have heard the same.

Natural grass built and maintained properly is the safest, most economical choice for Dover.

While the synthetic turf industry and their hired scientists say their products are ‘safe’, we know that plastics and tires contain carcinogens, neurotoxins, and endocrine disrupting chemicals. Children playing on these surfaces are exposed through inhalation, direct contact/skin absorption and accidental ingestion.

To date, no epidemiological studies have been conducted on the long term health outcomes of people exposed to crumb rubber infill and synthetic turf playing fields. We do know that children are especially vulnerable to the effects of toxic chemical exposure, even very low levels can have a detrimental and permanent effect.

"There is little question in the mind of many scientists and physicians that artificial turf and crumb rubber should not be a first choice material for children to play on. Parents should be able to enjoy watching their children playing sports and not worry that they are being put at risk unnecessarily." - Stuart Shalat, Professor and Director of the Division of Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Georgia State University

Based upon the presence of known toxic substances in tire rubber and synthetic turf plastic carpet and the lack of comprehensive safety studies:

• The Children’s Environmental Health Center of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai recommends natural grass fields and playing surfaces.
• Lowell Center for Sustainable Production at UMass Lowell identifies organic natural grass as the safest alternative.
• The Healthy Buildings Network also recommends organic natural grass fields as the lowest hazard choice for playing fields.

In addition to the hazards posed by toxic chemical exposure synthetic turf playing fields have other health concerns. For instance, burns and heat related illness are due to higher temperatures on artificial turf, as well as an increased incidence of lower torso injury, concussion and skin abrasions with potential for serious infection. Also to be considered are environmental concerns like the heat island effect, water quality and aquatic toxicity from stormwater runoff, particle migration (pollution from infill and turf like that of mircoplastics/microbeads), and effects on wildlife and other ecosystems.

Cost is also a factor, synthetic turf costs significantly more to install, and must be replaced and disposed of in a landfill when each field reaches the end of its useful life. 

A synthetic football or soccer field is expected to cost at least $3 million dollars over a 20 year period.

Natural grass fields when maintained on an organic program are the most cost-saving over the long term, at about 1/3 of that price over 20 years even if you factor in periodic full re-sodding.

Given these issues and more, it’s clear that installation of synthetic turf is in direct conflict with Dover’s Organic Land Management resolution, the City’s Resilient Dover plan and the Climate Adaptation Chapter of the Master Plan.

Please let the City Council, School Board & JBC know you oppose the installation of a synthetic turf playing field at the high school.

References:

1. Crumb rubber field coming to Dover High 
2. Artificial Turf Nixed at Dunaway Field
3. Dover revisits upgrades to outdoor athletic complex at high school: 'Long overdue'
4. Tons of abandoned artificial turf raises questions about recycling promises
5. ‘Our community has been deceived’: Turf wars mount over PFAS
6. Meet the 'rented white coats' who defend toxic chemicals
7. EHHI Synthetic Turf Report: Industry's Claims Versus the Science - Summary of Findings
8. Artificial Turf A Health Based Consumers Guide by The Children’s Environmental Health Center of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai 
9. Artificial Turf - Selecting Safer Alternatives for Athletic Playing Fields by Toxics Use Reduction Institute (TURI) at UMass Lowell 
10. Tire Particulate, Synthetic Turf, and Children Dr. Stuart Shalat
11. Penn State's Center for Sports Surface Research, High Surface Temperatures 
12. Synthetic Surface Heat Studies by Brigham Young University 
13. Plastic planet: How tiny plastic particles are polluting our soil
14. Toxic PFAS Chemicals Found in Artificial Turf
15. Sports Turf Alternatives Assessment: Preliminary Results
16. COST ANALYSIS by Massachusetts Toxics Use Reduction Institute 
17. THE 100-YARD DECEPTION
    A six-month NJ Advance Media investigation found FieldTurf, the top U.S. maker of artificial sports fields, made millions selling high-end turf to taxpayers in towns and schools across N.J. and the U.S. after knowing it was falling apart. 
18. The Latest FieldTurf Issue Is Nothing 1,000 Gallons of Glue Won’t Fix
19. Grass Can Take More
20. Commitment to Organic Land Management Practices (search 'organic') 
21. Resilient Dover
22. City of Dover Master Plan Climate Adaptation Chapter
23. Artificial Turf vs Organic Grass Workshop - Feb 2018