Carrie Bass urges Verona to reject Tencati PivotCool turf for Centennial Field, citing heat, PFAS and microplastics

Carrie Bass, chair of Sustainable Verona, urged Verona officials to reject a proposal to replace Centennial Field with Tencati's PivotCool artificial turf, citing environmental, health and lifecycle concerns and recommending the town instead consult a certified sports field manager to restore and professionally manage natural grass.

Bass said Sustainable Verona and academic studies have identified local heat islands and that one of them corresponds to the VHS lower artificial turf field (Goltz Field). "Artificial turf is a fossil-fuel product," she said, and described the field's full lifecycle impacts, from manufacturing to disposal, including an estimate that roughly 40,000 pounds of plastic are used to make a single field and that manufacturing water use can reach about 34,000 gallons per field.

The presentation focused on four main lines of concern: heat and player safety, contamination from PFAS and microplastics, uncertain recycling claims, and long-term costs. Bass cited published research and local measurements to challenge Tencati's marketing claims about PivotCool's cooling performance. "Using multiple surface temperature thermometers on 06/05/2026, we measured the temperature of the Tencati Pivot field installed at MKA Van Brunt Field when it was 92 degrees Fahrenheit. The average temperature of the field was about 160 degrees," she said, saying that finding undermined the company's cooling assertions.

On chemical safety, Bass warned that PFAS testing often uses detection thresholds too high to rule out contamination at parts-per-trillion levels and said marketing language such as "none detected" can be misleading. "No detectable levels of PFAS does not mean it is PFAS free," she said, and recommended complete disclosure answering whether fluorinated chemistry exists in the product, whether regulated PFAS compounds are present, and whether anything can leach out under real use conditions.

Bass also described how rain can transport microplastics, PFAS and additives off fields into drains and soil and potentially toward groundwater and municipal wells; she noted a Verona well near three artificial turf fields including Centennial. She cited studies that have identified turf fibers in rivers and coastal waters and described visible shedding at installed fields, including photos and examples from a nearby school field.

On recycling, Bass said industry marketing overstates the promise of closed-loop reuse. She described a pathway described by the company in which removed turf is processed and shipped to facilities in Texas and then to firms such as ExxonMobil for pyrolysis into fuels or byproducts, and said the approach produces toxic residues and air pollution and that the company's published materials indicate a roughly 10% recycling rate. "While the concept may be better than old turf fields sitting in landfills, it remains to be seen if it plays out as advertised," she said.

Bass pointed to recent policy developments and local action that, she said, support a cautious approach: a Verona Environmental Commission resolution urging conversion to grass passed unanimously on May 5, 2026, and she referenced state legislation under consideration that would limit municipal turf purchases and restrict Green Acres funds for turf projects.

She closed by urging Verona to explore professionally managed natural grass as a viable alternative, saying modern soil management, compost, irrigation, overseeding and, where appropriate, turf blankets and robotic mowing can produce durable grass fields. "Sustainable Verona recommends that Verona consult with a certified sports field manager to see what it would take and convert Centennial to natural grass," Bass said. She added that the same assessment should include Veterans Field, which she said could support more practices and games if restored.

The presentation concluded with Bass offering the Sustainable Verona report and the MSU study as posted to local webpages and inviting officials to ask questions and request the group's materials.

Next steps: Bass asked town officials to require transparent PFAS and performance testing, demand verifiable recycling documentation from vendors, and to commission a field-management assessment before any decision on artificial turf implementation.