Artificial Turf Ban Investigation
Climate Action Subcommittee
September 4, 2024
1 City Objectives and Drivers
Council Work Plan FY
2024/25: Directs city staff to
investigate of the feasibility of
additional city-wide
restrictions of artificial turf
installations
2 Background
• October 4, 2023 – Staff provided an overview of synthetic turf, the regulatory environment, and other local
considerations
• The Climate Action Subcommittee provided direction
to staff and requested more information
• Staff are returning today with requested information, staff recommendation, and seeking additional direction
3 Presentation Agenda
1. Regulations, Enforcement, Funding
2. Environmental Effects
3. City-Owned Parks
4. Other Jurisdiction’s Actions
5. Direction and Next Steps
4 Regulations, Enforcement and
Funding
5 State Legislation - Regulations
6 • AB 1164 (Gatto) - Effective October 9, 2015
• Prohibited local jurisdictions from enacting (or enforcing existing) ordinances or regulations prohibiting the installation of drought tolerant landscaping, including artificial turf, on residential properties
• SB 676 (Allen) - Effective January 1, 2024
• Rescinded the blanket prohibition on local jurisdictions enforcing drought tolerant or artificial turf installations on residential properties
State Legislation – Vetoed PFAS
Regulation
• AB 1423 (Schiavo) - supported by City, vetoed by Governor o Would have prohibited a public entity, including a charter city, charter county, city, or county, and any public or private school from purchasing or installing a covered surface containing regulated PFAS
• SB 903 (Skinner) - supported by City, died in appropriations o Would have prohibited the distribution, sale or offering for sale a product that contains PFAS beginning January 1, 2032
7 State Regulations – Department of Toxic
Substances Control (DTSC)
• 2024 – DTSC Initiated Safer Consumer Products
Regulations Rulemaking Investigation
• Investigation will decide whether to further regulate this product-chemical combination
• DTSC candidate chemicals are present in
artificial turf
• Turf additives already on DTSC candidate
chemicals list include:
• PFAS and Ortho-phtalates
8 Local Jurisdiction – Zoning Codes
• Zoning code chapter 20-34 G.3.d
and e, “Artificial groundcover or
shrubs shall not be allowed.”
• CAO - Not enforceable. The
definition of artificial ground
covering is elusive and code was
incompatible with AB 1164 (2015)
• Per new legislation, city can enact
ordinance banning artificial turf
beginning in 2024
9 Potential Enforcement Options
10 Reactive - Responding to citizen
complaints through the typical
code enforcement process
under current staffing model
• Limits the number of violations
addressed
Proactive: Assign our current code
enforcement officers to research
artificial turf installations
• Requires additional staffing or a
redirection of existing staffing
resources to perform initial
investigation and associated
enforcement
Enforcement Challenges
• Staffing resources
• May shift attention away from health and life safety issues • Permits are not required for the installation of turf • Turf installation dates are difficult to determine
• Proactive enforcement on backyard installations requires updated aerial photographs
• Inconsistent enforcement authority on similar uses
• Artificial turf ban may apply to private schools, but not public schools governed by State Architect 11 Is there state or federal funding to convert
artificial turf to natural turf?
• RPPG - There are no grant
opportunities that support the
conversion of these installations,
large or small
• The city has not incentivized the
installation of artificial turf in our
“Cash for Grass” programs
12 Environmental Impacts
13 Is there a disposal option available for
recycling artificial turf?
• No local options available for
recycling
• Requires specialized facilities
• Wide variety of materials in
manufacture
• Efforts have yet to materialize
• Some manufacturers claim to take
back, depends on condition
14 Greenhouse Gas Comparisons
• The manufacturing process to produce artificial turf requires large amounts of water, energy, and non-renewable materials
• CO2 emissions from artificial turf occurs during manufacturing, production, transportation, installation, maintenance and at end of life.
• Total CO2 emissions vary significantly depending on the infill materials • One study* found that the carbon footprint of a 9000 sq meter artificial turf installation with a 10-year lifetime is estimated to be
55.6 t/CO2, around three times that of a natural turf installation of the same size 15
*Environmental and Health Impacts of Artificial Turf: A Review (Cheng et al 2014) https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/es4044193 Heat Island Effect
• University of Massachusetts Toxics
Use Reduction Institute (TURI)
• “Outdoor synthetic turf reaches
higher temperatures than natural
grass, regardless of the infill materials
or carpet fiber type”
• There have been advancements in
heat-reflective technologies
o Alternative infill materials play a crucial
role in heat retention 16
https://www.uml.edu/research/lowell-center/athletic-playing-fields/ Water Quality and Human Health
What is Known
• Can PFAS and other chemicals can
leach from artificial turf?
• Are there human health effects to
interacting with artificial turf
(playing, walking, etc.)?
17 Questions From
Subcommittee
• PFAS and other pollutants is known to
be present in the manufacture of
artificial turf.
• These chemicals are known to be
harmful to the environment and humans
and are prevalent in our environment.
• The specific impacts to water quality and
human toxicity directly attributable to a
point source from artificial turf are hard
to define.
Education -Water Efficient Landscapes
• Santa Rosa promotes Russian
River-Friendly Landscaping
• Artificial turf is not consistent with
RRFL best practices
• Discouraged in available water
department guidance for low-
water use landscapes
• No peer-reviewed research could
be found on impacts of artificial
turf related to soil microbiome
18 City Owned Parks
19 Grant Funded Parks Projects
A Place to Play
• $1,000,000 received through the
SCAPOSD Matching Grant Program to
fund the next phase of development
including at least two new artificial
turf fields
• Outreach and design anticipated to
begin in the next six months
MLK Jr. Neighborhood Park
• Artificial turf field included in the
significant renovation program for
this well-used neighborhood park.
Fully funded through CA Housing &
Community Development’s Infill
Infrastructure Grant program.
• Outreach and master planning /
design kicked off in May 2024
20 21
Artificial Turf Natural Grass
Cost of installation
(per SF, typical full size soccer
field)
$25 - $30 / SF
$1,080,000
$15 - $20 / SF
$1,620,000
Annual maintenance cost
(per field) $8,000 $40,000
Life expectancy
10 – 15 years
(cost of replacement less
than original)
Depends on quality of
installation, level of play
and maintenance
Capacity for play
Doubles the number of
playable hours compared
to natural turf
Seasonal and maintenance
/ rehabilitation closures
Cost Comparisons
22 • Artificial Turf Installation costs about $540,000 more to install but realizes a savings in maintenance and operations of approximately $32,000 per year.
• Any calculation of when an artificial field will have “paid for itself” must factor in the increase in playable hours
(between 50% and 100%) which could cut the cost
recovery time in half or more.
Cost Comparisons
23 Artificial Turf Maintenance Requirements
Daily Maintenance: Inspect, Groom and monitor surface temps Semi-weekly Maintenance: Irrigate as required
Weekly Maintenance: Sweep, remove any foreign objects, redistribute infill, make minor repairs and clean
Monthly Maintenance: Replenish the infill and control weeds Yearly Maintenance: Perform deep grooming and replenish infill. Test to measure field hardness
Best Management Practices for the Sports Field Manager: A Professional Guide for Environmental Sports Field Management April 2021, Sports Field Management Association
Natural Turf Maintenance Requirements
24 Weekly Maintenance
• Weed removal (mechanical
and chemical)
• Pest management
(herbicide)
Semi-weekly Maintenance
• Irrigation
• Mowing (2x per week)
Daily Maintenance
• Litter removal
• Fill gopher holes
• Safety inspections
Monthly Maintenance
• Over-seeding damaged
areas
• Paint/Line fields
• Aerate field 4-8 times during
season
• Topdress field with soil and
sand
Annual Maintenance
• Fertilization (bi-annual)
• Adding soil amendments
(biosolids)
• Reseed and/or replace sod
• Overhaul irrigation
• Soil testing
• Measure soil compaction
• Measure infiltration rate
As-needed Maintenance
• Repair irrigation
• Pest management
• Fill holes
• Paint / Line Fields
• Over-seed
• Grading
• Surface drainage
• Fertilize damaged areas
25 Can we meet the needs of our community
with natural turf fields alone?
• More fields are needed to meet demand whether they are natural turf or artificial turf.
• There is a communicated demand for year-round sports – which cannot be met regardless of the number of natural turf fields.
• Fields are unusable between November and March.
• Renovated and new natural turf fields could help satisfy the need, and maintenance is supplemented by the organizations, but seasonal closures and high levels of maintenance are a persistent and ongoing burden 26 Can we partner with schools to use their fields
when needed?
• School fields have very limited availability because they are already so heavily programmed by the schools.
• The City would need agreements with each school district with field use schedules worked out annually.
• Safety is now a major concern for schools and they are less inclined to open their campuses on nights and weekends to outside user groups. • School districts also struggle with funding and staffing for operations and maintenance of their fields.
27 Measure M Outreach to Santa Rosa Sports Clubs & Leagues:
• More athletic fields are needed throughout the city
• Artificial / all weather turf is important to accommodate the demand for athletic fields
• Soccer community was most well represented and advocated for the need, but also baseball and softball communities
Public Comments on Artificial Turf in Parks
28 Survey Questions:
How many more athletic fields and
sports courts does Santa Rosa need?
o <5 10%
o 5-10 38%
o 11-20 20%
o 21-30 9%
o >30 5%
o Unsure 21%
What kind of surfacing should new
athletic fields be made of?
o Natural Turf 7%
o All Weather/Artificial Turf 34%
o Both types of surfacing are
important to have 49%
o Unsure 10%
Would you prefer the City spend money to
convert current fields to all-weather, lit fields OR
to build new all-weather, lit fields?
o Convert current fields to
all-weather and lit 32%
o Build new fields that are
all-weather and lit 12%
o Doing both is beneficial 51%
o No opinion 6%
Public Comments on Artificial Turf in Parks
Other JurisdictionsActions
29 Other Jurisdiction Actions
City of San Marino (October 2023) - Instituted a temporary moratorium until September 12, 2024, to allow time for a study
City of Millbrae (January 2024) - A 2021 temporary moratorium became permanent: "The use and installation of synthetic grass and artificial turf landscaping material is prohibited." • Primary goal to limit stormwater runoff as City is located on hillside. • Existing installs must allow rainwater permeability and be well maintained. • When damaged, existing installations must be removed.
Santa Clara County (April 2024) - Proceeded with a study for a potential ban on artificial turf on county-owned property
City of Los Angeles (July 2024) – Committee of the Council approved a feasibility study to look into the health effects of artificial turf and the feasibility of a potential ban 30 Direction and Next Steps
31 Staff Recommendation – Turf Ban
If CAS Direction is to recommend Council consider a ban on artificial turf installations in Santa Rosa, staff recommends the following:
• Apply to artificial turf installations once adopted by Council and not retroactive
• Exempt sports fields
• Exempt installations that currently have grant funding secured or are currently in the process of applying for grant funding • Code enforcement would be reactive to complaints*
• Provide Information and outreach on ban 32
*Pending staff capacity and resources available
Staff Recommendation – Education
If CAS Direction is not to recommend Council consider a ban on artificial turf installations in Santa Rosa, staff recommends the following:
• Continue to not rebate artificial turf installations
• Continue to promote Russian River Friendly Landscaping Guidelines
• Provide education and information on concerns with artificial turf 33 Next Steps
• Based on direction provided, staff will bring a study session to a future City Council meeting for
direction from the City Council
34