Grass Is Never Greener When It's Synthetic  

Evergreen grass that doesn't require any maintenance sounds like a dream of every house owner.

The artificial grass trend has become increasingly popular in the UK in recent years. For many of garden owners living grass is now too complicated to handle. Advertised as an easy to maintain and recycled material it is also widely used to cover sports fields and children playgrounds. But there are growing concerns about the environmental and health impacts of fake grass. 

The production of synthetic grass uses fossil fuels and produces enormous amounts of carbon dioxide. 

Synthetic grass causes microplastics and rubber debris to leach into rivers, lakes and the sea. Microplastics are carried by the wind onto the landfill and pollute the soil. Microplastics are generated by the physical and chemical degradation of synthetic material. 

New research by the Australian Microplastic Assessment Project (AUSMAP) with Northern Beaches Council found that areas with plastic grass and synthetic fields in Australia are more polluted with microplastics. According to the study, 80 per cent of the waste entering stormwater drains was black debris from astroturf – compared to 5 per cent in areas without synthetic fields. 

Covering the surface with plastic grass also causes higher ambient heat. On hot days the temperature of the surface covered with synthetic material is twice as high as natural grass.  

Sebastian Pfautsch from Western Sydney University, who researches the impact of rising temperatures in urban spaces, said: "I absolutely loathe synthetic grass." "It is possibly the worst materials for heat and it is made from completely unsustainable, non-recyclable plastic that goes straight to landfill."

Synthetic grass doesn't absorb the water from the rain and causes flooding. As no plants grow in it, it doesn't create a habitat for wildlife, insects and birds. It basically doesn't offer any life conditions to anything above it and kills everything below it. The more plastic grass we have, the less real green space we have and the less nature we preserve. 

Plastic grass and astroturf used on sports fields are made from recycled tires and have numerous negative health concerns. Many of the ingredients are toxic and increases cancer risk by releasing hazardous chemicals into the air. 

Dangerous and carcinogenic chemicals found in synthetic plastic grass include metals such as zinc, arsenic, cadmium, and lead, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), phthalates, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and antimicrobial compounds. 

Although there are very few studies that looked at human health outcomes in association with spending time on synthetic fields, scientists suggest that we should be worried about health effects in children many years after exposure to these chemicals. Some of the health issues that may appear in later life include hormone levels problems, disruption of puberty, decreased fertility and obesity.

Natural plants and grass "encourage a healthy ecosystem" by capturing CO2, emphasises the petition launched to ban the sale of artificial grass in the UK.

"It is environmentally irresponsible to allow garden space occupied by grass & other plant life (which processes CO2 & supports wildlife) to be replaced by plastic which does not biodegrade," the petition says. "Banning the sale of artificial grass could be a small step towards increasing the UK biodiversity, reducing our carbon footprint and helping our ever-dwindling insect and wildlife population." 

Until now, 31,202 participants (July 2021) signed the petition. That's a lot more than in September 2020, when a similar petition was issued and collected only 11,667 signatures.

If this new call to action reaches 100,000 signatures before November 17 2021, it will be considered for debate in parliament.