Will our stadium turf have lead?

After reading this. story about possible lead contamination in artificial turf fields, I asked John Hair, director of auxiliary services for Rock Hill Schools, what this means for putting artificial turf at District Three Stadium. As you recall, the district is spending about $700,000 to put in the fake grass because of its lower maintenance costs and more user-friendly surface.

After boiling down the science talk for this less than science-savvy reporter, here is the scoop:

There are a few kinds of turf: those made with polyethylene, nylon or a mix of the two. The fields with nylon fibers appear to be the ones that are causing the health department to have heartburn. So Hair said the school district now will install a field made only with polyethylene. That way there is no risk that they will have to dig it up and replace it later if turns out the turf fields really do have too much lead. The swap won't cost any more money, he said.

For the record, Hair said the turf they will put at the stadium is very similar to the stuff on the soccer field at Manchester.