The Partnership for Healthy Playing Surfaces
Grass Fields
Natural grass fields provide a soft, resilient, and safe playing surface that constantly re-grows itself, keeps athletes cool, handles biological waste naturally, and looks and smells great.
Cost: Costs depend on whether you wish to rehabilitate an existing field, or completely rebuild your field. According to a study by Michigan State University, the total construction cost of a new grass sports field (tile drained, slit drained, irrigated, fully lit and fully fenced with bleachers, players benches and goal posts), is estimated at $480,000. (1) According to the Sports Turf Managers Association, the cost of constructing a high quality natural grass field is between $7 and $10 per square foot, or roughly $400,000 to $570,000 for a typical athletic field. (2) You can also improve the quality of an existing grass field at a much lower cost, by incorporating basic organic management practices to improve soil health, composition and drainage.
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Most costs associated with grass athletic fields are related to maintenance. These costs can vary widely depending on field use needs. The Sports Turf Managers Association estimates that annual maintenance costs for grass fields range from $13,000 to $30,000. (3) TURI documented annual costs to maintain athletic fields using organic practices for three Massachusetts communities. For example, the City of Springfield, MA manages its athletic fields at a cost of about $1,500 per acre annually. These costs are summarized in the table below:
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TURI. Natural Grass Playing Field Case Study: Martha's Vineyard, MA. 2020. https://www.turi.org/content/download/13432/205432/file/Natural+Grass+Playing+Field+Case+Study+MV+MA.Dec2020.pdf
TURI. Natural Grass Playing Field Case Study: Marblehead, MA. 2019. https://www.turi.org/content/download/12705/198916/file/Natural+Grass+Playing+Field+Case+Study+Marblehead+MA+revised.Nov2020.pdf.
TURI. Natural Grass Playing Field Case Study: Springfield, MA. 2019. https://www.turi.org/content/download/12156/190509/file/Natural+Grass+Playing+Field+Case+Study+Springfield+MA.+June+2019.pdf
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Maintenance: Natural grass fields require regular maintenance throughout the growing season. Organic grass management focuses on building healthy soil to create an environment for resilient grass growth without the need for pesticides. Core organic maintenance practices include frequent mowing, regular aeration, soil testing, and addition of fertilizers and soil amendments based on results from soil testing. Communities can successfully achieve a grass field that meets their athletic needs without synthetic inputs.
Life Expectancy: Natural grass fields can renew themselves season after season. Properly managed, the lifetime of natural grass sports fields can be 20 years or more before full renovation is required. (4) Cost of total renovation is $50,000 to $250,000. (5)
Safety and Preference: Natural grass fields can provide safe, cushioned surfaces for athletic play. As with all types of athletic fields, it is important to periodically test the impact absorption of fields. Compaction on grass fields can be alleviated with aeration. Natural grass is overwhelmingly preferred by professional athletes. (6)
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Martha's Vineyard Oak Bluffs School’s newly renovated fields. 7 weeks since seeding and roots are already 7 inches long. Healthy soil grows healthy turf.
Body Fluids: The soil microbes that exist in well maintained healthy soil handle all types of body fluids and animal waste without the need for applications of disinfectants (pesticides). (7)
Temperature: Natural grass fields keep athletes cooler on hot days. (8) (9)
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Weather: A well-constructed grass field has good drainage and allows excess water to flow away from the field. Additionally, soil that is regularly aerated and has balanced organic matter content has higher water holding capacity. Communities that have invested in good field construction and organic management of their fields find that weather-related cancellations on these fields are rare.
Environmental Impact: The environmental impact of natural grass fields is minimal, unless synthetic high nitrogen fertilizers and toxic pesticides are used for maintenance. (See natural grass management).
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- | Springfield, MA | Marblehead, MA | Martha's Vineyard, MA |
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Area of natural grass maintained naturally | 67 acres of athletic fields, recreational space, and general use city property | 20 acres of athletic fields | 8.6 acres of athletic fields |
Products | Organic fertilizer, lime, soil conditioner | Organic fertilizer, lime, soil conditioner | Organic fertilizer, humic acid, calcium silicate, loam/sand, seed |
Labor | City environmental and maintenance staff | City staff | The Field Fund staff and contractors |
Rentals and other maintenance | Periodic irrigation maintenance, equipment maintenance | Periodic irrigation maintenance, equipment maintenance | Periodic irrigation maintenance, equipment maintenance, aerator rental |
Total cost per acre | $1,500/acre | $4,140/acre | $7,600/acre (includes 30% "island markup") |
Citations:
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[1] https://archive.lib.msu.edu/tic/stnew/article/2002mar12.pdf (adjusted for inflation).
[2] "Natural Grass Athletic Fields," Sports Turf Managers Association, https://netforum.avectra.com/Public/DocumentGenerate.aspx?wbn_key=2477cbb1-83a2-4b1a-8789-1d2997bd6152&Site=STMA.
(3) http://www.stma.org/sites/stma/files/STMA_Bulletins/NaturalGrassFields.pdf
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(5) Sports Turf Alternatives Assessment: Preliminary Results. COST ANALYSIS Massachusetts Toxics Use Reduction Institute September 2016.
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(6) Sports Turf Managers Association. https://sturf.lib.msu.edu/article/2009mar31.pdf
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(7) New Jersey Education Association. Accessed at http://www.synturf.org/images/HS_GrassTurf_May08_1_.pdf
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(9) https://www.stma.org/natural-grass-athletic-fields/
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Links:
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Organically and Sustainably Managed Grass Athletic Fields: Information for Schools and Municipalities
www.turi.org/organicgrassguide
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