Cancer-Causing Materials Found in School Turf in South Korea

Artificial turf, manufactured and installed worldwide, has become a danger to children around the globe. Substances that can cause cancer have been found in artificial turf at schools in South Korea. According to an environmental group in Gyeonggi Province, Monday, a large amount of poisonous metals and other harmful materials were found in man-made lawns in the playgrounds of three schools inspected at the beginning of this month. The environmental group said one of the three schools had 290㎎ of lead in its artificial lawn, three times more than the allowed figure of 90㎎, and other two schools had 46.7㎎ and 810㎎ of polyaromatic hydrocarbon, which includes Beazopyrene, respectively. Heavy metals such as lead can cause health problems when swallowed or inhaled. At very high levels they can cause seizures, comas and even death. Beazopyrene ㅡ more than 10㎎ of which is dangerous ㅡ is a product of incomplete combustion that can cause skin cancer. (The Korea Times, click here)