AstroTurf, California, Reach Settlement Over Lead

Sacramento, CA, Aug. 14, 2009--AstroTurf has reportedly agreed to reformulate its products, replace fields and playground surfaces installed over the last five years and pay thousands in fines, according to a settlement the California Attorney's General's Office will announce Friday.

In a lawsuit filed in September, California claimed the U.S. arm of FieldTurf Tarkett, AstroTurf and the Beaulieu Group "knowingly and intentionally exposed individuals within the State of California to lead" in violation of Proposition 65, a ballot initiative approved two decades ago that mandates warnings on any toxic substances.

Lead`was found in levels of more than 5,000 parts per million — 50 times the federal threshold and 100 times the California standard — in tests conducted by the California Attorney General's Office and the public interest group Center for Environmental Health.

As part of the settlement, which only applies to California installations, AstroTurf will cut lead — which was used by manufacturer to keep the colors vibrant — to 50 parts per million by June 2010.

The company is also barred from selling its current stock of turf that doesn't meet the current federal standards and it must notify customers who have had AstroTurf installed over the past five years.

Those customers can have their turf tested and replaced if lead is found.

AstroTurf, which did not admit to any wrongdoing in the settlement, will pay $170,000 in civil penalties, grants and attorney fees.

Christine Gasparac, a spokeswoman for the California Attorney's General Office, said the state is "exchanging information and in productive settlement negotiations" with FieldTurf Tarkett and the Beaulieu Group.

Related Topics:Tarkett, Beaulieu International Group