Viewpoint: Plans for artificial turf field in Missoula have consequences
MT Plastic Free Missoula
We are disturbed to learn that Big Sky Professional Baseball and the MRA are considering replacing the grass at Ogren Park with artificial turf. The Missoula Current article published July 18th shared why they are considering artificial turf. However, it failed to mention the long-term costs and serious associated health and environmental risks.
Artificial turf is expensive and short-lived. Beyond the $2m upfront cost, it requires specialized equipment, maintenance, training, and eventual disposal. Turf must be replaced every 8–10 years and cannot be recycled, adding to landfill waste and exacerbating plastic pollution. Properly designed and maintained organically grown natural grass is safer, generates less waste and pollution, and costs less. Safe and Healthy Playing Fields found that over 20 years artificial turf costs 2-3 times more than grass.
Artificial turf gets dangerously hot—up to 70 degrees hotter than the surrounding air—causing melted shoes, blisters, and heatstroke. Ironically, it must be watered to cool down, defeating claims of water savings. In contrast, grass naturally cools the environment.
Worse, artificial turf contains toxic chemicals—PFAS, phthalates, formaldehyde, and more—that threaten people's health and the health of the Clark Fork River. It sheds microplastics during use, exposing athletes to cancer-linked substances through multiple exposure pathways and increasing injury risks while flooding adjacent waterways with toxic plastic pollution. Considering the average 80,000 sq ft field (about 2 acres) contains 40,000 pounds of plastic carpeting and 400,000 pounds of infill, which is often made from petrochemical products, it should come as no surprise that artificial turf may be responsible for 15% of plastics in rivers and oceans.
Artificial turf contributes to climate change. The manufacturing, installation, maintenance, and disposal of a 2-acre artificial turf field generates a total of 55 metric tons of carbon dioxide, whereas natural grass can sequester 16 metric tons. Grass absorbs carbon dioxide and releases oxygen. Artificial turf does the opposite: It releases carbon dioxide and methane.
Artificial turf is neither safe nor sustainable. The stewards of Ogren Park—a City-owned, public facility—should not replace living grass with a toxic plastic surface.
We urge the City and MRA to reject artificial turf and invest in maintaining a healthy, natural grass field at Ogren Park—for the safety of our community, our environment, and future generations.
Signed by: MT Plastic Free Missoula, Families for a Livable Climate, and Grow Safe: Non-Toxic Missoula