Committees launch double attack on the spread of plastic ‘grass’
Plastic grass could be on the way out in Guernsey if two States committees have their way.
Environment & Infrastructure and the Development & Planning Authority are working together on the project. Both want to see planning restrictions imposed.
‘We are looking at it because we are not happy with the principle of it, because it’s reducing biodiversity for Guernsey,’ said E&I member Adrian Gabriel, who is leading on the issue.
‘If you damage one part of our environment, the risk of damaging another part of it is greater ... without biodiversity – a wide range of plants and micro-organisms – we cannot have the healthy ecosystems that we rely on to provide us with the air we breathe and the food we eat.’
He said that installing fake grass also caused food loss for wildlife.
‘You take away food which is already scare in a suburban or urban environment then you affect the entire food chain,’ he said.
‘By creating a dense plastic barrier on top of compacted soil, no other garden material can break down into the soil, for example leaf litter, which is essential for feeding soil organisms like worms and microscopic animals that keep soil healthy. Soil is the building block of our entire ecosystem.’
The shedding of microplastics, the use of chemical disinfectants to clean the plastic, and its ‘huge’ carbon footprint, were all detrimental to the environment, Deputy Gabriel said.
‘It could also contribute to local flooding as the installation of plastic fake grass could affect the permeable drainage, so large volumes of rain water could be displaced and cause problems elsewhere, causing habitat loss,’ he added.
‘Plastic fake grass can’t be recycled easily as it needs to be clean and is made of mixed plastics – specialist treatment is need to recycle adequately.’
DPA president Deputy Victoria Oliver said discussions about planning legislation were ongoing.
‘This is a subject that is being discussed by the committees of E&I and DPA, as it goes against the Strategy for Nature,’ she said.
‘Artificial grass is something that the authority would like islanders to avoid if at all possible, as the biodiversity in it is so low.’
The Royal Horticultural Society has already banned it from all flower shows.
