To the editor:

Please reject #8 and #9 on the ballot. 

Let’s put the health of our children and our environment first. Why?

The research has demonstrated: Turf results in more physical injuries; some sports professionals refuse to play on it; High heat synthetic turf has been documented to reach temperatures over 200 degrees F on a 98 degree F day increasing risk of burns; Turf releases toxic fumes from chemicals that your child will breathe in - toxins like benzene, arsenic, styrene, and VOCs; Microplastics - Each synthetic turf field looses 0.5 to 8.0 percent of its blades annually, yielding 200 to 3,200 pounds of plastic waste to our environment per year. These microplastics migrate off the field into air, soil, waterways and oceans, and it kills the microbiome of the soil underneath. 

There are communities in the Netherlands that are removing and banning turf fields by 2030 for these very reasons. Let’s learn from their mistakes. 

If you’ve ever wondered why people are getting sicker and sicker and at a younger age? It because communities like ours have allowed these exposures, among other things, to happen. Think about your child or grandchild on these fields five days a week. It’s not worth it. 

Beware of companies that promise turfs that have “recyclable turf”, “advanced recycling” or “organic infill” as they either don’t exist and/or are not regulated. The US does not practice the Precautionary Principles, and it has allowed millions of chemicals onto the market that our bodies and brains don’t know how to process.

Your children are the most vulnerable.

Avoidance is the only way to prevent health problems related to exposures. Grass is better. Please vote NO! 

Sincerely yours,

Achina Stein DO

Barrington