City to remove artificial turf in Woodstock Park

“Might contain lead”

By Merry Mackinnon

The Bee, Nov 5, 2008, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (1 Reader comment)

Merry MacKinnon / THE BEE

Underneath this merry-go-round at Woodstock Park is a synthetic turf which Portland Parks and Recreation says it will remove, due to unverified concerns that it might contain small levels of lead.

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There’s artificial turf under the merry-go-round at Woodstock Park, and now it is slated to be removed, due to concerns that it might contain lead.

It turns out that Portland Parks and Recreation, which owns and manages Woodstock Park, has not actually tested the artificial turf for lead. But, testing was done last summer on a similar synthetic turf which covers a soccer field next to Rieke Elementary School, and a small amount of lead was found there.

According to Portland Public Schools’ online District News (www.pps.k12.or.us), the lead levels at Rieke were “well within the range deemed safe by the Consumer Products Safety Commission.” Nevertheless, Portland Parks and Portland Public Schools decided take a conservative approach by closing Rieke Elementary School’s soccer field to children under the age of 11.

Synthetic turfs at Lincoln High School and Cleveland High were also tested for lead. A letter to parents posted in the District News said children are not prohibited from using the fields at Lincoln and Cleveland because “the risk of exposure is either non-existent or within a range determined to be safe.”

At Woodstock Park, the artificial turf in question was installed underneath the merry-go-round about seven years ago, says Portland Parks and Recreation Information Representative Beth Sorenson.

Sorenson explained that the whirl-pad [artificial turf] at Woodstock doesn’t get nearly as much use as Rieke’s field, and lead is more likely to be released from the synthetic turf if the material has broken down over time into dust.

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