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Residents urge Burrillville council to halt artificial‑turf project over PFAS and tire‑chemical concerns
Summary
Multiple residents urged the Town Council to pause the FieldTurf athletic‑field installation, citing health and water‑quality concerns including PFAS and 6PPD‑quinone, a lawsuit filed Sept. 4, and requests for withheld conservation letters to be released.
Residents pressed the Burrillville Town Council on Sept. 25 to stop or pause an artificial‑turf project at the high school, saying the town has not been transparent about environmental and health risks and noting a lawsuit to halt the work.
Speakers during the public‑comment period said experts have identified risks beyond PFAS and asked the town to release correspondence from conservation authorities. Irene Watson told the council that, on Sept. 4, resident Roberta Lacy — through attorney Marissa Desotel of Desotel Browning Law in Newport — filed suit seeking to stop or slow the athletic‑field project. Several commenters said neighbors are having private wells tested and expressed concern for children who would play on the field.
Pia Bauer said letters from the Conservation Commission, the Burrillville Land Trust and the Conservation Law Foundation appear not to have been made public and called the omission “a red flag” that undermines public confidence. Tracy Stewart and others cited a Sept. 17 webinar hosted by community groups with scientists from Mount Sinai and Northeastern University; they raised the tire‑chemical 6PPD‑quinone and said tests in nearby communities have shown contamination above proposed limits for aquatic toxicity.
Commenters asked the council to publish contract details, explain the town’s claim that terminating the turf contract would cost taxpayers ‘half a million dollars,’ and provide a comparative cost estimate for buying out the contract and installing natural grass. Several speakers urged the council to “cut your losses now” and pursue contract termination rather than litigation between the town and residents.
The town did not take a vote on the turf project during the Sept. 25 meeting. Council members acknowledged the public concerns, and multiple speakers urged additional review of scientific evidence beyond PFAS and broader disclosure of consultant communications and letters from conservation groups.
The next procedural step shown in the record is an executive session later that night about the litigation filed by Roberta Lacy (case PC‑2024‑04858).
