The City of Edina Energy and Environment Commission voted overwhelmingly to condemn the use of crumb rubber in the city of Edina.
On May 12, the Edina Energy and Environment Commission (EEC) voted 10-2 in favor of a resolution condemning the use of crumb rubber in Edina. Currently there are two city-owned fields, Pamela Park and Braemar, that utilize this controversial in-fill material. The Edina School District is now moving forward with plans to install crumb rubber in-fill on four new fields and to replace the turf on Kuhlman Field with crumb rubber. It is not yet clear what impact the EEC condemnation vote will have on the existing Edina-owned fields or on the new construction of the school district fields. Cities and school districts throughout the country have banned crumb rubber because of health and environmental concerns caused by the material, which consists of ground up waste tires. The federal Environmental Protection Agency is currently conducting a major study of the health and environmental risks posed by crumb rubber and expects to issue a preliminary report by the end of 2016.
The EEC is an advisory commission consisting of 13 community members that helps the City of Edina stay on the forefront of environmental issues