Old sports pitches gain new life

Artificial turf pitches have changed dramatically since their introduction more than 50 years ago. Those first synthetic playing fields - hard, unyielding, prone to warming and relatively short-lived - have long given way to highly-engineered turf systems with a performance that comes close to that of natural grass. Artificial playing surfaces today are ubiquitous in many different sports, including field hockey, baseball, tennis, lacrosse, football and rugby.

Yet one problem that has not been solved is that of the end of life. Although more durable than their earlier versions, artificial turf playing fields still only have an estimated useful life of between 12 and 15 years, after which they are disposed of in a landfill or incinerated.- also known as thermally recycled. While formally complying with the legal requirements applying today, neither is a particularly sustainable end-of-life solution.

To address this issue Sport Group, a leading global supplier of sport surfaces, last year, together with its subsidiary Polytan, established a new company called Forma Turf GmbH, which aims to provide the German market with a better end-of-life solution in the form of materials recycling. Polytan is the leading installer of artificial grass in Germany.

In the approach adopted by FormaTurf, first, the synthetic turf is removed from the site. Next, a wet separation process is used to separate the individual components out, to enable these to be recycled. The plastics can be used to make new components for sports fields, such as building blocks, grass pavers or kerbs. The sand, which makes up up to 70 percent of the weight of an artificial turf system, is washed and can be used again, for example, as an infill or for other purposes.

A new, state-of-the-art recycling plant is currently under construction in Essen, on a site spanning 20,000 square metres, with room to store up to 100 large pitches. Up to large pitches seats will  be recycled here annually. The first pitches are expected to be recycled at the new site by the second half of 2022.

Each incoming artificial turf system is assigned a QR code, for transparency  purposes, allowing customers to track where the materials in their pitches end up. Much depends on the condition of the various components of the turf systems, once this has been dismantled. All incoming waste pitches are therefore extensively tested to assess the level of pollution and the disposal methods to be applied. A second test is carried out after arrival and the products made from the recovered materials are also tested.

Estimates show that this approach can yield a considerable savings in CO2 emissions. According to Beate Kummer, chemist, toxicologist and environmental expert, if FormaTurf recycles around 40,000 tons of artificial turf every year, this will result in a reduction of 33,333 tons of greenhouse gas emissions compared to the previous means of disposal.

“That roughly corresponds to the annual CO2 emissions of the citizens of a small German town… from an ecological point of view, FormaTurf is on the right track,” she noted.

Why not make new artificial turf from the recovered materials? Tom Beck, managing director of FormaTurf explained that, although it was possible to do so,  it required a great deal of energy and effort.

“You also have to consider that there is very little material left that can be used as new raw material in the end. We therefore made a conscious decision to recycle the artificial turf as a material. Economic and ecological balances show that raw material (chemical) recycling to obtain artificial turf raw material makes no sense. In addition, we save a large proportion of fossil resources by manufacturing new building products.”

Sustainability comes at a price, added Peter Herbig, head of Sales at Polytan in Germany.

"You have to reckon with a surcharge of around ten percent of the total project volume if you decide on a new artificial turf and have the old one recycled at FormaTurf,” he said. Yet, even though it is more expensive, it is a far more environmentally-friendly solution, said Beate Kummer, and one supported by recent political decisions and the legal situation.

According to Kummer, under the new public procurement law, not only economic but also ecological aspects must be taken into account in procurement decisions. The recently amended Circular Economy Act provides for environmentally friendly and compatible procurement, while the new traffic light coalition agreement - named after the colours of coalition parties -  has said that municipalities must take the lead.

“And last but not least, the new Climate Protection Act: It stipulates that products should be environmentally friendly and energy-saving over their entire life cycle,” she added. Artificial turf included.