GREEN SPACE
As Climate Change Fears Grow, a Real Fight Over Fake Turf
A city’s decision to replace actual grass with a synthetic version sets off a conflict over the possible environmental and health risks of the move.
TRACEY TULLY / NEW YORK TIMES – Residents near a small neighborhood park in New Jersey awoke early this month to the roaring sound of heavy machinery: A grassy field they had been begging officials to fix for years was finally getting a face-lift.
Then they learned of the details.
The field and more than a dozen trees lining Columbian Park in East Orange, a densely packed city in northern New Jersey, were being bulldozed to make way for an artificial turf football and baseball field and a rubberized running track. Plans also call for a playground and stationary exercise equipment, as well as 40 new saplings …
