Environmental Activists Rally Against Artificial Turf

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Activists with the local group Zero Waste Ithaca organized a protest at Ithaca College against the universities plan to replace the grass field in Butterfield Stadium with artificial turf.

Local activists gathered on June 1, braving the 90 degree heat to protest the upcoming installation of artificial turf at Ithaca College's Butterfield Stadium. The rally, organized by Zero Waste Ithaca, followed several months of discontent from IC students and Ithaca locals.

After IC's initial announcement, The Ithacan reported on the adverse impacts of artificial turf, raising concerns about environmental risks and athlete wellbeing. In collaboration with Zero Waste Ithaca, IC students Abby Aitken ’23 and Adriana Sulca ’24 wrote an online petition to stop the installation which has garnered over 900 signatures. Among them are Judith Enck, president of national nonprofit Beyond Plastics, and local environmental activist Sandra Steingraber.

Thursday's protestors gathered on a street corner in front of Ithaca College. Many wore green Zero Waste Ithaca shirts, designed by an active member. They carried reclaimed material signs with phrases including "No Fake Grass" and "Protect Athletes: Say No to Toxic Turf."

Yayoi Koizumi, who founded Zero Waste Ithaca in 2018, gave a speech on the potential dangers of artificial turf to ecosystems and athletes. She called for others to sign the petition and join the movement against plastics.

"Together, we have the power to make a difference," Koizumi said. "Our presence here today should send a strong message that we refuse to accept the risk associated with artificial turf for students and our community."

Zero Waste Ithaca planned the event as a rapid rally in several days. According to Koizumi, it was the organization's first protest. Since the turf field's announcement in November, they had sent several letters to the IC administration, which did not provide a substantial response. When The Ithaca Voice reported that the Town of Ithaca Planning Board had approved the field's construction, Zero Waste Ithaca jumped into action. They painted signs, wrote a press release, and spread the word to community members.

The rally took place after most IC students had left for the summer. A dozen locals and Zero Waste Ithaca members showed up, and Koizumi expressed satisfaction with the turnout.

"That's a pretty good number for something that was put together in a few days," she said in an interview.

As the petition signatures would suggest, the issue of artificial turf has garnered local and national attention. In 2022, the city of Boston banned the installation of new artificial turf in parks. An upcoming bill in the New York State Senate would place a moratorium on the installation until the state could conduct a comprehensive environmental and public health assessment of synthetic turf.

The petition lists several points against artificial turf fields. According to research cited in the letter, they shed microplastics, including perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs), which do not break down in nature. Recent research has also linked synthetic turf to rare forms of cancer in athletes. Artificial fields may cause higher rates of game-related injury than grass fields, leading J.C. Tretter, president of National Football League Players Association J.C. Tretter, tocondemn its usage in the NFL.

As Environmental Science majors, Aitken and Sulca participated in a land stewardship program through Syracuse University. This led them to collaborate with Zero Waste Ithaca and ultimately to write the petition. Sulca said it brought the issue of turf fields to Ithaca's student community.

"I still don't think that most Ithaca College students care about it as much as they should," Sulca said. "Ithaca College is promoted as an environmentally friendly school."

IC administration did not provide any comment on the rally or the petition.

Zero Waste Ithaca member Cheryl Botts expressed the organization's focus on reducing plastic production, whether in sports or other industries. She noted that the rally and petition complement Zero Waste Ithaca's other initiatives. Their flagship project, BYO – Ithaca Reduces, encourages Ithaca businesses to invite customers with reusable containers and limit single-use plastics.

"The problem is the plastic itself," Botts said. "It's being overproduced. Most of the plastic, 95%, is not being recycled, even though you think it is. And the incineration problem is vast."

Even if IC administration choose to disregard the concerns of their students and Ithaca locals by going ahead with construction, Zero Waste Ithaca plans to raise its voice and stop future turf installation projects in the region.

The origional version of this article incorrectly named Sandra Steingraber as Sandra Rivera. It has been updated with the correct name

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This is a private school. Why not go after the County?????

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