Please support the following petition, started by Elodia Thomas, asking Buckingham Browne & Nichols School to reconsider the proposal for artificial turf playing fields at Grove Street.
Beginning in 2014, the residents of Watertown began a successful multi-year effort to reject a plan that would place a second artificial turf playing field at Victory Field. This community effort was based on the mounting scientific evidence that the plastic blades, industrial-grade infill, and a host of additives, including fire retardants, contain hazardous chemicals and heavy metals that are especially harmful to children and to residents of all ages with compromised immune systems.
Since 2014, the growing body of evidence that these chemicals are harmful to the environment has increased and intensified community opposition to this unnecessary substitute for state-of-the-art, organically maintained grass playing fields. Of special concern to us, regarding the BB&N site, is that stormwater runoff will carry the turf’s toxic chemicals into the Charles River.
For this and many more reasons, we respectfully request that BB&N, before committing to artificial turf fields, allow members of the greater Watertown community, to make our case for choosing the healthy environment/healthy immune system option: state-of-the-art organically maintained natural grass.
Click here to read the full petition. Please sign and share it.