Members of the recycled rubber and synthetic turf industries have announced that they are cooperating to ensure that all synthetic turf and playground infills meet new American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) toy standards for heavy metals to further guarantee safety for youth athletes.
Standards in Line with ASTM Regulations
ASTM International establishes industrywide standards across a range of materials, including all toys sold in the United States. With the announcement, all synthetic turf field and playground infill created and used by members of the Recycled Rubber Council, Safe Fields Alliance and Synthetic Turf Council will comply with F3188-16, the Standard Specification for Extractable Hazardous Metals in Synthetic Turf Infill Materials.
“Our industry firmly believes in taking proactive steps to augment ongoing testing by the federal government to reassure parents and policymakers that the fields and playgrounds children play on are every bit as safe as the toys they play with,” says Steve Bigelow, president of the Recycled Rubber Council, Falls Church, Virginia. “We’ve chosen to voluntarily take this step to demonstrate our commitment to children safety, and we continue to welcome all further scientific-based testing and collaboration towards achieving these ends.”
