The New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club has submitted comments to the National Park Service urging them to prevent Middlesex County’s massive artificial turf development proposal for Thomas Edison Park. The park already has several playing fields, over a dozen tennis courts, a running track, baseball fields, and a parking lot for 300 cars. Middlesex County’s proposal includes building 14 new artificial turf sports fields, 16 tennis courts, parking for 1,350 cars, and more.
This proposal for Thomas Edison Park will have many detrimental land use impacts. Among those, it will increase impervious land cover, potentially causing flooding problems, and reduce public access to natural park area.
“Natural grass playing fields and open spaces should not be replaced with toxic synthetic turf that has been found to create significant environmental and public health issues,” said NJ Chapter Conservation Program Manager Taylor McFarland.
There are safer alternatives to improve recreation opportunities for residents and athletes, she said.
Adding 14 new artificial sports fields to Thomas Edison Park equates to 32 acres of synthetic turf and 7 million pounds of plastic. A standard artificial turf field contains 500,000 pounds of plastic, which results in microplastic shedding into the environment.
On a warm day, synthetic turf radiates more heat than a plant-based surface, leading to extreme temperatures that adversely affect players and raise surrounding temperatures. A synthetic turf field lasts just 8 to 10 years on average, after which thousands of pounds of infill and plastic carpet must be removed and replaced. Mixed plastic waste, such as synthetic turf, is not recyclable using conventional methods. Therefore, used field material is typically sent to landfills, where it may remain for centuries.
“We urge the National Park Service to pursue safer alternatives for the park that can responsibly accommodate active recreation while protecting our health, environment, and overall access to the park,” McFarland said. The county should stick with natural grass fields, reduce the proposed parking lot area, and preserve the 11 acres of woodlands that would be destroyed for this project.