December 3, 2024
Burrillville Town Council
Attn: Donald A. Fox, President
105 Harrisville Main St.
Harrisville, RI 02830
Re: Synthetic Turf Athletics Field at Burrillville High School
Dear Mr. Fox,
Save The Bay has recently become aware of the Town of Burrillville’s proposed installation of synthetic turf fields adjacent to the Clear River and within a drinking water supply aquifer. The health of Narragansett Bay is heavily influenced by water quality, habitat conditions and land use changes in the Bay’s 1,705 square mile bi-state watershed. As a result, in order to advance our mission to “protect and improve Narragansett Bay” Save The Bay focuses on reservoirs, lakes, rivers and streams in the watershed that flow directly to Narragansett Bay. Impacts to water quality are expected to continue into the foreseeable future and pose a profound threat to the ecological health of Narragansett Bay. Unnecessary and avoidable impacts to rivers, streams, and wetlands should not be permitted. The Clear River, is a major tributary to the Blackstone River. The Blackstone is a significant source of freshwater to Narragansett Bay, and one of the major sub watersheds of the larger Narragansett Bay region.
Save The Bay is writing in solidarity with the Burrillville Land Trust, Blackstone River Watershed Council / Friends of the Blackstone, and the Burrillville Conservation Commission in opposition to the Town Council’s recent decision to install a synthetic turf playing field at the Burrillville High School. While we appreciate the Town Council's commitment to improving recreational facilities in the community, we have significant concerns about the potential environmental and health impacts of synthetic turf. As state officials warned the Town of Burrillville in August, 2024, studies have confirmed the existence of per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) in artificial turf.
In your responses to the above organizations’ letters of opposition to the turf field installation, the Town Council repeatedly asserts that the town “has demonstrated that the specific products they will be using contain negligible PFAS and are not of concern to human health or the environment.” Water with PFAS levels greater than 20 ppt is above Rhode Island’s state standard. On April 10, 2024, EPA announced Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for the final National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) for six PFAS compounds. EPA sets the minimum testing MCL that is enforceable for PFOS and PFOA (components of PFAS) at 4 ppt, but the health-based, non-enforceable Maximum Contaminant Level Goals (MCLGs) for these PFAS is zero. Therefore, even “negligible” levels of PFAS pose a serious threat to drinking water supplies and the environment.
Save the Bay agrees with the assessment provided to the Town by Rhode Island’s Department of Health and Rhode Island’s Department of Environmental Management that cautioned the town against installation of a synthetic turf field. Sampling data in North Smithfield shows a direct correlation between the contamination of drinking water supplies and the installation of the replacement turf field at the North Smithfield High School in 2021. PFAS contamination levels in drinking water doubled, posing a serious threat to public health and the environment. Indeed, as Rhode Island’s Department of Health and Rhode Island’s Department of Environmental Management letter warned the Town of Burrillville, artificial turf labeled as “PFAS-free” have been tested to show PFAS contamination.
The proposed installation of the synthetic turf fields uses materials that pose a risk to Burrillville’s water resources. In addition to the presence of known and regulated PFAS compounds, there is still so much we do not know about additional PFAS chemicals that are also present and the extent of impact their presence may carry. The drinking water contamination in the neighboring town of North Smithfield provides a cautionary tale, with identified risks to public health. Burrillville’s determination to proceed against such well documented risks threatens the integrity of drinking water and the environment. Although the Town Council repeatedly asserts that the artificial field contains “negligible” PFAS, it is proven that even “negligible” levels of PFAS pose a serious threat to drinking water supplies and the environment. For these reasons, Save The Bay is opposed to the Town of Burrillville’s proposed installation of the synthetic turf fields.
We look forward to your response and hope for an opportunity to discuss this matter further.
Sincerely,
Jed Thorp
Director of Advocacy, Save The Bay
jthorp@savebay.org
cc:
Paul Roselli, President Burrillville Land Trust
John Marsland, President Blackstone River Watershed Council/Friends of the Blackstone
Ronald Lapierre, Chairperson Burrillville Conservation Commission
Michael Wood, Burrillville Town Manager
Dr. Michael Sollitto, Superintendent of Schools
Jeffrey M. McCormick, P.E., Director of Public Works
Terrence Gray, P.E., Director RI Department of Environmental Management
Jerome Larkin, MD, Director RI Department of Health
