With Little League International gettingmore involved with the Portland venue it wasrequested that the Main and East infields beskinned for the week-long tournament heldin mid-August. Since most of the league playduring the season for District 4 involves bothboys baseball and girls softball the infields areleft as grass, the mound circle is measured at40-feet with an 8-foot radius, and the base-ball pitching rubber is at the back at 46 feet.Twice the infield of the Main Stadium Fieldwas stripped, regraded and big roll soddedwith play 7 days later.

There are typically 10-14 days before theWorld Series starts after the last DistrictTournament for the host team to qualify.Then the preparation begins for the fields for

32 SportsTurf | February 2012 www.sportsturfonline.com

Facility&Operations | By Mike Hebrard

Transitioning infield skin from turf to dirt and back

FROM THE TIME the Little League Softball World Series MajorDivision moved from Kalamazoo, MI to Portland, OR in 1992the tournament has been played on conventional 60-foot bases

with a grass infield. This wouldn’t typically be the norm for competitivefast pitch softball where one bad hop or errant throw could mean theoutcome of the game.

The tartan pattern was originally done for the openingceremonies and only after the acceptance from the tour-nament director, Bob Hudlow, and ESPN 2 was it decidedto repeat the pattern for the championship game.

live television coverage by ESPN 2 forthe semifinals and finals. Aeration, sliceseeding, topdressing and fertilizing startsthe day following the last tournamentgame, which can pose challenges toachieve great results before the tourna-ment starts. However the field gets bet-ter every day and, interestingly, looks itsbest about 2 weeks after everything isover. The decision to go with a skin in-field not only frees up some renovationtime, but gets the field ready for tradi-tional softball play.

On the first available day the sprin-kler heads are marked and the two infront of the shortstop and second basepositions are measured and capped.Then the infield grass is sod-cut atabout 1 inch and quickly removed by a

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SportsTurf 33www.stma.org

Answers from page 17The mower operator is missing because he fell off the mower.A new sidewalk as well as a retaining wall was being installed atthe bottom of this steep hill. After the forms for the wall were re-moved, a 3-foot gap was left directly behind the wall. During thenight a rainfall occurred, making the clay hillside very slippery andwhen the mower operator was mowing the area, the mower sliddown the slippery clay and into the crevice, ejecting the moweroperator onto the newly poured sidewalk. The mower operator’sonly serious injury was to his pride; however a valuable lessonshould have been learned here. If you look closely at the picture,you will notice the mowers rollover prevention system is in thedown position. If the mower had gone over the retaining wall, itwould have likely landed on top of the mower operator, causingvery serious if not fatal injuries. This photo should be a lessonthat all ROPS systems should not be attached with pins that canbe removed. Instead they should be bolted securely to preventtampering with in the event of an accident.

Photo submitted by anonymously.If you would like to submit a photographfor John Mascaro’s Photo Quiz please send it to JohnMascaro, 1471 Capital Circle NW, Ste # 13, Tallahassee, FL32303 call (850) 580-4026 or email to john@turf-tec.com. Ifyour photograph is selected, you will receive full credit. Allphotos submitted will become property of SportsTurf maga-zine and the Sports Turf Managers Association.

John Mascaro’s Photo Quiz

34 SportsTurf | February 2012 www.sportsturfonline.com

Facility&Operations

rubber track ASV skid steer and discarded.The existing soil is lightly tilled with a tow-behind Aerovater, breaking up the hardcompacted soil and getting the dirt at aconsistent mixture. Then 25 yards of Asto-ria Sandstone is added to bring the infieldlevel up since almost 1 inch of 3,000square feet of sod was removed. Then lasergrading begins with a slight fall to 2nd anda ½% cone from the mound. Finally, twotons of Turface MVP are added, naildragged in, and leveled.

This year’s tournament featured a newlook for the infield skin portion. By meas-uring every 4 feet down each baseline andthe opposite grass edge area of a conven-tional 60-foot base infield, a string wasstrung out and, with the use of a Scottsdrop spreader, Turface’s new infield condi-tioner (Pro League Heritage Red) wasspread in straight lines. Pulling the dropspreaders backwards allows for the productto come out faster and uniform. With prac-tice, the application was done faster andmore precisely.

Softball needs to have a white line to in-dicate the 8-foot radius where the pitchercan receive the ball. After the pitch the run-ners have to immediately return or advanceto the next base. Inside the circle was com-pletely filled in with a couple of passes ofthe drop spreader. The patterns were laid

out so that they had a continuous appear-ance all the way around. The tartan patternwas originally done for the opening cere-monies and only after the acceptance fromthe tournament director, Bob Hudlow, andESPN 2 was it decided to repeat the patternfor the championship game. The Champi-onship game went on without a hitch andthe patterns easily made it through the 6-inning contest.

After the tournament is over the sprin-kler heads are located. Then the infield isquickly regraded for a grass infield. Seedingwas done in both directions with a Lescoslice seeder. The fixed spinning blades ofthe slicer act as a power planer and shaveany high dirt and gradually smoothes theloose dirt over the seed. Since the seedingor sodding of grass will raise the height ofthe infield, the grading of the grass portionof the infield is lowered ¾ of an inch toprevent starting with a lip.

Grass lines are established by running agas edger backwards to create a clean groovein the dirt. Using a landscape rake the in-side of the groove is shaved down, allowingthe grass to grow even with the infield dirt.This year the baselines were seeded as wellto try to limit the maintenance for the un-predictable fall Oregon rain. With tarps forboth the mound and homeplate availableand the infield graded with a slight slope to

the back edge of the infield, rains can effec-tively be managed.

A starter fertilizer is applied with abroadcast spreader in both directions togive uniform coverage. A light raking canhelp spread out heavy or light seeded areas.Then grass straw mulch is applied at 100lbs per 1000 square feet with a screen roller,much like a peat moss spreader. A light wa-tering before the straw mulch is applied willhelp with the mulch to stick to the soil andnot be so dusty. The grass straw mulchhelps to hold moisture in as well as give thenewly seeded infield a tint of green.

After a couple of weeks the sun bleachesout the color and the newly planted grassseed starts to emerge from the soil. Since ahigher percentage of grass seed falls into thecut grass line edges they are more pro-nounced. If the ground is firm enough aquick light mowing with a push reel mowercuts the first shoot of grass blades allowingit to tiller more quickly and fill in. After amonth another application of fertilizer willboost the top growth of the grass. With fre-quent watering and mowing the infield isready in 4-6 weeks for the fall Little Leaguebaseball program. ■

Mike Hebrard is the owner of AthleticField Design, Clackamas, OR, www.athleticfield.com.

SportsTurf 35www.stma.org

I ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT ASKINNED SOFTBALL INFIELD WASA LITTLE DRAB LOOKING when itcan to watching it on TV. After high-lighting the mound circle and batter’sbox with Pro League Red or HeritageRed, the thought came to me—whatabout drop spreading the product in asquare overlapping pattern much likemowing grass?

First I tried using Emerald Field andFairway, a green colored topdressingcalcined clay that has the same particlesize as sand. After a couple of testareas it was deemed to be too light ofa contrast to make an impression (isthis still red or green?). I originally didthis for the opening ceremony and

mentioned to the Tournament DirectorBob Hudlow that I would like to do thisfor the Championship game on ESPN2. He took a picture and sent it to theESPN crew and they replied theywanted to know what it looked likeafter the 4th inning. After a couple ofgames ESPN 2 had no problem with itso the Green Light to do it was on!

I decided to use Turface’s HeritageRed which is actually has more of abrownish tone to it. For a pattern style Ichose the conventional checkerboardfor the ease, quickness and contrast. Istarted by inserting a tape measure atthe apex of 2nd base and home plateand by laying them out in the same di-rection. If you are using a 2-foot widespreader, scribe a mark every 4 feet inthe dirt. You will go on opposite side of

the string with each pass. In order tocome out evenly with your spacing,use a string down each chalk line and2 inches in from the outside of thebase to complete the square; that wayyou will know when to stop.

Use a sharp spike or screwdriverwith premeasured strings, (I like tohave two that way you always haveone line ready to go while the next oneis being moved) angle them back a bitand even use a hammer and poundthem in, that way the string doesn’tcome out at an inopportune time. Setthe spreader wide open and go back-ward, running the wheel near the stringline and stopping (at the premarkededge. You can fill in the mound circlewith the same color or another con-trasting one for more visual effect.

The mound needs to have a whitecircle around it to indicate when theball is back in the pitcher’s possession.Do a pass around the circle on yourlast straight line near the mound. Re-peat the process going in the oppositedirection. Little League softball for the11-13-year old girls is 6 innings andthe patterns easily last the entire game.I had one of my assistants commentthat he didn’t care for the different sur-faces; I quickly responded “Oh, like

grass and dirt?!”-Mike Hebrard Insert tapes at the apex of home-

plate and 2nd baseIf using a 2-foot wide drop spreader

scribe mark every 4’ in the dirtUse the drop spreader backwards

and complete the square You might have to make a couple of

attempts to come out evenContinue the process stopping at

the end and going the opposite direc-tion

Do a finish pass around the moundcircle

You can either fill in the mound withthe same color or use a contrastingone.

Softball requires an 8-foot white cir-cle be marked around the pitchers rub-ber so even with same color you willstill have a break in the pattern.

We usually used three bags of Her-itage Red per application

We had the best results wetting theinfield in advance and letting it air dryand after infield warm-ups just wettingthe unmarked portion of the infield toget the best results.

We added a little spice to theprocess and actually had four of thesame Scotts spreaders and did a quickremark just before the game ■

How to put mowing patterns on infield skins

I had one of my assis-tants comment thathe didn’t care for thedifferent surfaces; Iquickly responded “Oh,like grass and dirt?!”—Mike Hebrard

36 SportsTurf | February 2012 www.sportsturfonline.com

Facility&Operations | By Sandee Smith and Harrison Hill

Q. How do my 401(k) contribu-tions lower my income taxes?

A. Your 401(k) contributions canbe made on a pre-tax basis. Thismeans that they aren't reported to theInternal Revenue Service as currentincome on your W-2 form. For exam-ple, if you earn $50,000 a year anddecide to contribute 10 percent ofyour salary ($5,000) to your 401(k)account on a pre-tax basis, only$45,000 will be reported as currentincome for income tax purposes.

Why does the government giveyou this excellent tax break? Becauseit wants to encourage individuals tosave as much as possible with theirown dollars today so that they arebetter prepared for their retirementin the future.

Q. What is a Roth 401(k)?A. Roth 401(k) is not a type of

plan, but rather a type of plan contri-bution. If a 401(k) plan offers this fea-ture, employees can designate some orall of their elective contributions asdesignated Roth contributions, ratherthan traditional, pre-tax elective con-tributions. Roth contributions, how-

ever, are taxed in the year they are contributed to theplan (i.e., they are made on an after-tax basis). Upondistribution, Roth 401(k) contributions are receivedtax free. Earnings on Roth 401(k) contributions willnot be taxed upon distribution if the Roth accounthas been open for at least 5 tax years and distributionoccurs after 59½ , death or disability. Traditional401(k) contributions and Roth 401(k) contributionsare subject to a combined limit of $17,000 for 2012($22,500 if age 50 or older).

Q. Am I able to contribute to both a 401(k) andan IRA?

A. Yes. Many individuals contribute to their401(k) plan and to a traditional Individual Retire-ment Account (IRA) or Roth IRA. It may be best tomaximize your traditional 401(k) contributions first,since they can be made with pre-tax dollars. (Your tra-ditional IRA contributions may or may not be tax de-ductible, depending on your annual salary and otherqualifications.) If your employer offers matching con-tributions and you qualify for a traditional IRA orRoth IRA, it may make sense to contribute enough tothe 401(k) plan to obtain the maximum employermatch, and then contribute to a traditional IRA orRoth IRA if eligible. If you have not then exhaustedthe maximum allowable contribution and can affordto do so, consider contributing additional amounts toyour 401(k) plan.

Q. If I change jobs, may I take my 401(k)money with me?

A. Yes. All contributions you have made to your401(k) account are 100 percent yours. Contributionsmade by your employer (if any) may be yours depend-ing on a vesting schedule. You will need to check yourplan for specific vesting schedules.

In addition, if you do change jobs, it may be agood idea to consider either rolling your 401(k)money over into an IRA or another qualified plan(such as a profit-sharing or 401(k) plan) at your newemployer. Otherwise, you may incur taxes and earlywithdrawal penalties. Be sure to check with your taxadviser before taking any distributions from your401(k) plan.

This article is published for general informationalpurposes and is not an offer or solicitation to sell orbuy securities or commodities. Any particular invest-ment should be analyzed based on its terms and risksas they relate to your specific circumstances and ob-jectives. ■

Article courtesy of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney Fi-nancial Advisors.

COMMONLY ASKED401(k) plan questionsBecause your retirement planning is so important to your futurewell-being, you should ask questions about the retirement plansavailable to you and how they work, as well as how to best useyour retirement dollars. Below are answers to several commonlyasked questions about 401(k) plans.

Traditional 401(k)contributions and Roth401(k) contributions aresubject to a combinedlimit of $17,000 for2012 ($22,500 if age50 or older). Im

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SportsTurf 37www.stma.org

THE COMPANY WITH THEBEST TALENT has the bestchance of winning in the competi-

tive marketplace. Employee recruitmentforms a major part of a company’s overallresourcing strategies, which identify and se-cure the best talent to help the organizationsucceed, in both the short and long term.Recruiting activity needs to be responsive tothe ever-increasingly competitive market tosecure qualified and capable candidates atall levels. That said, recruitment should beconstant and conducted by all people in theorganization, regardless of backlogs or cur-rent staffing levels. Yes, it is true that we allneed to be recruiting the best people to joinour companies.

If you really believe in your company,you will want good people to join yourteam. The company needs to be noticed bypassive job seekers before the competitioncatches their eye.

Companies that implement a plan ofcontinuous recruiting experience unex-pected positive benefits. Active recruitingmeans being visible and vocal in your in-dustry, which helps your public relations, aswell as your positioning with trade schoolsand universities.

You have to always think smart. Smartemployers who are in touch with the bestcandidates as a result of “always recruiting”develop a pre-qualified candidate pool be-fore there is a need to fill a job. You candevelop relationships with candidates longbefore there is a need to hire them. Thiswill help create a large pool of candidatesthat will be useful when you have a newposition available. As you know, thingscan change quickly — a key employeeleaves, you suddenly get a large backloadof work, there is a desire to expand into anew market, or you need to make a sud-den personnel change. These things are allmade a bit easier when you have a pipelineof candidates.

Your capability and capacity to delivertargeted results and sustain economic pros-perity within your organization is highlydependent on “always recruiting” strongtalent. It is a fact, as published by the Har-vard Business School Press, that organiza-tions that “always recruit” score in the top20 percent in talent management, and pro-duce an average of 22-percent-greater totalreturns than those companies who aren’t al-ways recruiting.

You always need to have an edge overyour competition, and “always recruiting”will give you that edge.

Once you have mastered the concept of“always recruiting,” hiring the right candi-date becomes a less challenging process.Hiring the wrong employee is expensive,costly to your company, and time consum-ing. Hiring the right candidate, on theother hand, pays you back in employee pro-ductivity, employee morale, positive for-ward-thinking planning, and accomplishingchallenging goals. It also cements a success-ful employment relationship and makes apositive impact on your total work environ-ment. You can develop relationships withpotential employees long before you needthem. This idea will also help you in re-cruiting a large pool of candidates whenyou have a position available.

Some key steps when hiring a new em-ployee are as follows:

Define the job before hiring: Hiringthe right candidate starts with analysis ofthe job. The job analysis enables you to col-lect information about the responsibilities,competencies and work environment of theposition. The information from the analysisis necessary in developing the job descrip-tion. The job description assists you inplanning your recruiting strategy.

Review applications and credentialscarefully: Reviewing resumes and job ap-plications starts with a well-written job de-scription. Making a bulleted list of your

most desired characteristics, then screeningall the applicants against this list, will be agood use of your time and a good way todraw out the most qualified candidate.

Prescreen all candidates: A candidatemay look great on paper, but a pre-screen-ing interview will tell you if their qualifica-tions and salary requirements are truly a fit.A phone interview will also obtain evidencewhether the candidate will fit within yourculture.

Ask the right interview questions: Thejob interview questions asked are critical inmagnifying the power of the job interviewin assisting you in hiring the right personfor the job. Interview questions should al-ways be open ended, such as, “What is yourmost memorable accomplishment andwhy?” The idea is that the interviewershould talk less and listen more. You wantto get to know the candidate, and, let’s faceit, most people like talking about them-selves and their accomplishments.

References and background checks:References and background checks shouldalways include past supervisors, educationalcredentials and actual jobs held.

The bottom line is that managers mustalways be recruiting. That does not neces-sarily mean an official posting of a job, buta good manager should always be network-ing and looking for great talent. A managershould always have a half dozen people theywould like to hire, if the occasion were topresent itself. That doesn’t mean offeringthem a job — it means getting to knowthem well, understanding their strengthsand weaknesses, and exploring their aspira-tions and how they may fit into your or-ganization.

Good managers have succession plans inplace for every role in their organization.Good managers are always recruiting. Ifyou lost one of your key people today,could you pick up the phone and call a halfdozen replacements tomorrow? If youcouldn’t, you need to start recruiting. ■

Noël M. Dubak is manager of global re-cruitment/development at Bartlett Tree Ex-perts. She can be reached via e-mail atndubak@bartlett.com.

Facility&Operations | By Noël Dubak

Tips for recruiting TOP TALENT

38 SportsTurf | February 2012 www.sportsturfonline.com

Irrigation&Drainage | By Troy Leezy CID, CLIA, CWCM

rotor zones, to using full water audits, soilanalysis, and daily, automatic sprinkler runtime adjustment for evapotranspiration rates(evapotranspiration is the measured com-bined loss of water from soils by evaporationand plant transpiration) calculated by on-site weather stations. While these newerscheduling methods are more efficient,many turf managers may lack the resourcesand experience to develop highly efficient ir-rigation schedules.

Among the variety of solutions for irriga-tion scheduling are “smart controllers” of-fered by many manufacturers that can helpassist with daily irrigation scheduling adjust-ments. Smart controllers are irrigation con-trollers that have the ability to adjust thedaily irrigation run times based on theweather conditions. These smart product of-ferings vary greatly in cost and complexity.Some manufactures offer simple add-onweather sensors that provide true onsiteweather data that may be compatible withexisting field controllers. Other more com-plex solutions may require existing field con-trollers to be replaced and add monthlysubscription costs to supply the daily weatherinformation from distant weather stations tothe site. While smart controllers can be use-ful tools to achieve greater efficiency in irri-gation scheduling, they first require anaccurate assessment of the site. Another con-sideration is that weather-based controllersoften times need significant initial observa-tion and adjustment before optimal perform-ance is achieved.

Effectiveirrigation schedulingEditor’s note: The author is the marketing manager for Hunter Industries.

H AVING AN EFFECTIVE IRRIGATION SCHEDULE es-tablished for the upcoming

season is not only useful to help managewater and pumping costs, but also to helpreduce disease, fertilizer use, runoff, and

erosion. An effective schedule contributesto healthier turf, greater playability, andmore importantly, increased safety. Thecreation of irrigation schedules have ma-tured in many ways from the old meth-ods of arbitrary runtimes for spray and

There are many knowledge bases in the irrigation industry that can assist withthe education and consulting of an irrigation system. The following websitesoffer different educational resources and networking opportunities:

http://www.water.ca.gov/wateruseefficiency/landscape/ www.irrigation.org (Irrigation Association) http://www.atinet.org/cati/cit/ (Center for Irrigation Technology, Fresno) http://www.asic.org (American Society of Irrigation Consultants) http://www.stma.org/ (Sports Turf Managers Association)

>> Below: ROTARY SPRINKLERS can be high effi-ciency sprinklers, designed for safety and reliabilityfor sports fields of all types.

Educational resources and networking opportunities:

SportsTurf 39www.stma.org

MOISTURE SENSOR OPTIONSAnother option to assist with irrigation

scheduling is the use of moisture sensors.Typical systems using moisture sensorshave one or more sensors placed in therootzone of the irrigated area. These sen-sors will either inhibit or shut down an irri-gation cycle once optimal soil moisturelevels are present. A simple tool to use as areference of the level of soil moisture is thetensiometer. These devices are installed inthe rootzone similar to moisture sensors,but provide a gauge that can be visually ref-erenced for the status of soil moisture.

Regardless of any technologies beingemployed, it is important to note that hav-ing an efficient system is paramount to ef-fectively using your limited waterresources. It is a good idea especially onolder systems to perform a tune-up beforeaddressing scheduling concerns. Duringthis site inspection the system should bechecked for damaged and leaking headsand to ensure heads are level and unob-structed. At this time the pressure shouldalso be checked at the nozzle to verify theoptimum manufacturer pressure recom-mendations are met. If the pressure is toohigh, pressure regulation at the valveshould be considered since high pressurecan hamper efficiency just as badly as lowpressure. If low pressure is observed refer tomanufacturers nozzle data. Often smallernozzles can be used to help reduce flowand restore pressure and nozzle efficiencyto the system.

GOING MONTHLYAn irrigation schedule should be created

for each month of the growing season. Thiswill serve as a base schedule that will typi-cally require only minor adjustments withthe exception of extreme weather eventslike prolonged rain or above average heat.The first step in this process is to collecthistoric or average evapotranspiration ratesfor the local area. This data can often beaccessed through a water purveyor websiteor by an internet search for the best avail-able local source. Once this data is gath-ered, you can derive how many inches ofirrigation water is needed by plant type.The irrigation schedule would then bebuilt to replace this lost moisture.

An additional consideration of the effi-ciency of the irrigation system componentsalso plays a role. Since no irrigation systemis 100% efficient, additional irrigation willneed to be applied to compensate for thedifference between the plants needs andthe ability of the irrigation equipment toapply the water. As a general rule, rotarysprinklers range in efficiencies from excel-lent at 80% or higher, to a general averagein the 70% range. Spray sprinklers tend tobe less efficient than rotary with the highrange being 60% and an average around50%. Many systems with pressure, flow,and maintenance issues can fall well belowthese averages. Irrigation system audits arehighly recommended to understand truesystem efficiency. Often times,the cost of a full water auditwill provide a reasonable re-turn on investmentthrough potential ir-rigation schedul-ing water savings.

Soils can bethought of asyour waterreservoir andsoil type playsa significantrole in deter-mining howoften and towhat durationirrigation needsto be applied.For example,sandy soils donot offer asmuch water holding capacity as a clay soil.However, sandy soils are able to absorbwater being applied over a longer period oftime before irrigation run off begins tooccur. Clay soils are the opposite, and gen-erally require several short sprinkler runtimes before the desired amount of water isapplied to the rootzone. Simply runningthe irrigation system and observing theamount of run time until runoff occurs is auseful way to help determine the length ofirrigation run time your soil can handle.

An important note to consider whendetermining sprinkler run times is thatsoils generally have a high initial intake rate

that will drastically decrease, especially asyou approach the soils water holding ca-pacity. It is important to keep in mindplant roots do not seek water; rather onlygrow where water is present and your irri-gation schedules should be designed toprovide more infrequent, deeper wateringcycles. Frequent, short irrigation cycles typ-

ically only provide moisture in thefirst few inches of the soil. This

will create a shallow moisturereservoir and lead to shorterrootzones and less droughttolerant turf.

As you prepare for your up-coming growing season, assessand repair the irrigation sys-tem at spring start up and gen-erate an expected monthly

irrigation schedulebased on your

local evapo-transpiration

rates. If yourbudget allows, strong con-

sideration should be madefor employing irrigationsystem audits and newtechnologies like smart

controllers or to helpachieve optimum water

savings for greater safetyand playability. There are many knowledge

bases in the irrigation industry thatcan assist with the education andconsulting of an irrigation system.The following websites offer differ-ent educational resources and net-

working opportunities:• http://www.water.ca.gov/wateruseeffi-

ciency/landscape/• www.irrigation.org (Irrigation Associa-

tion)• http://www.atinet.org/cati/cit/ (Center

for Irrigation Technology, Fresno)• http://www.asic.org (American Society

of Irrigation Consultants)• http://www.stma.org/ (Sports Turf

Managers Association) ■

Troy Leezy CID, CLIA, CWCM and Mar-keting Manager at Hunter Industries

>> PRESSURE REGULATION at thevalve can immediately solve highpressure issues that can lower sprin-kler performance. Hunter’s Accu-Syncpressure regulator shown here.

THE SPORTS TURF INDUSTRY has seen hugegrowth in the number of synthetic turf sports fieldboth in our nation and the rest of the world over

the last decade. The newer infilled playing surfaces nownumber in the thousands, if not tens of thousands. Thequality of play on these fields compared to the first gen-erations of artificial playing surfaces is impressive. Alarge number of college and profes-sional teams now own syntheticsports fields, either at their sta-dium or practice facilities. Whatwas once a luxury now seems to bea necessity for many.

The basic construction of a syn-thetic playing surface consists ofsynthetic fibers or carpet, the infill(sand or rubber), backing material, achoker stone layer, open grade andsoil. In essence the fields are not allthat complicated and installations inmost cases can be done in a just a fewdays or weeks at most. While the in-vestment of a synthetic field now seems commonplace and enjoyedby owners for years and years.

A new question is looming on the horizon. What to do with thefields once they have has met its life expectancy. There are analarming number of fields that will be removed over the nextdecade and some thought should be given on how to dispose ofthem properly.

The average synthetic field will includes between 300,000-750,000 pounds of infill material varying due to the mix of sandand rubber and over 80,000 square feet of plastic fibers. So what isthe answer that would be the most environmentally friendly? WasteManagement and many other disposal companies are now signalingthat they do not want the materials or they will charge outrageousfees to put them in a landfill.

Many companies now promoting recycling all materials well inadvance of their industry peers and are using machines to removethe synthetic fields at the end of their life and separate the compo-nents of each to be recycled or reused. Let’s take a look at how thematerials could possibly be used in a constructive and environmen-tally sound manner.

Several years ago Dr. Trey Rogers and Tim Vanini from Michi-gan State University identified that crumb rubber had potential as apossible topdressing material. The approach makes sound agro-nomic sense, but the use of rubber infill only on a limited basis.Can the application of using crumb rubber as a soil amendment bepopularized?

The majority of playing fields are made of plastic fibers pro-duced from polyethylene and polypropylene. The clean surface

fibers ofthese older fields can be cut, recycled andmade into lower density fibers. However, mostbacking materials cannot be recycled in thismanner and are used as a low grade fuel atsome smelting plants and cement kilns thatharness this energy for producing othergoods. A number of synthetic turf manufac-turers are now advertising turf made fromfully recycled materials ahead of their com-

petition.There are a relative few turf installers that have discovered that

removing, cleaning and reusing materials on site is not only a goodmethod, but also reduces the cost of a replacement field. A me-chanical infill remover can take out the old infill separate it andthen it can be cleaned for reuse or disposed if necessary. A largeportion of rubber infill can be used again in most applications,while sand is disposed of by selling or donating to other sources.

If the playing field is worn, but still has some life left it can besold or donated to high school or other facilities with lower budg-ets. There are also stories surfacing of used turf being used as golftee mats, to line sand traps on golf courses, or other uses. Thereseems to be a growing number of outlets for used synthetic turf andthe world wide net can surprisingly help find an old field a newhome.

The Synthetic Turf Council (STC) is the first group to take apro-active look at these concerns with its End of Life Disposal TaskForce. The STC encourages options that avoid landfills once a syn-thetic turf field has met its life expectancy. Owners can seek advicefrom them and request copies of publications such as the organiza-tion’s “Suggested Performance Guidelines” that will help identifywhen a playing field is nearing its end of life. Check out their web-site at www.syntheticturfcouncil.org.

The number of equipment manufacturers that produce ma-chines to assist end users in the recycling of synthetic turf and itscomponents is growing. The companies that provide this servicewill grow exponentially as the thousands of fields start to mature.Look for the increasingly numerous sources to recycle or repurposethe byproducts of your old field before its end of life and you willnot only save yourself costs of replacement, but you will also keepyour operation environmentally friendly. ■

40 SportsTurf | February 2012 www.sportsturfonline.com

Tools&Equipment | By Paul Hollis

Re-using syntheticturf infillEditor’s note: Paul Hollis is executive vice president ofRedexim North America.