「Are Recycled Rubber Mats Unhealthy」の版間の差分

2016年7月27日 (水) 21:31時点における版

The rubber employed in recycled rubber mats arises from tires, that incorporate a amount of dangerous chemicals. In this article, read about the latest research with regards to the safety of recycled rubber mats.

Many everyone has expressed concern about using recycled rubber. Recycled rubber arises from used tires, which many fear could harbor lead or other toxins. Concerns kicked into high gear last year after the environmental advocacy group PEER (Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility) uncovered internal communications through the EPA that stated the agency couldn't vouch for the protection of recycled rubber concerning had not been enough studies done then.
So are recycled rubber mats unhealthy? Let's examine the facts.
Recycled rubber mats



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are made from used tires that could otherwise wind up in the waste stream. Used tires can sit in a landfill for thousands of years without breaking down. There, the tires can catch fire, leading to massive creation of toxic smoke. Tire fires are hard to extinguish, and tires can smolder inside stacks for many years at a time. In open dumps, they turn into a breeding ground for mosquitoes, which spread disease.
Recycling tires into materials like playground mulch and rubber mats decreases the number of tires that wind up in landfills by around 90%.
Rubber mats and mulch on playgrounds lead to significant reductions in injuries as compared to wood mulch or concrete. According to one study, injuries were twice as common on wood mulch surfaces and half a dozen times as common on concrete.
The using recycled rubber raises justifiable concerns. The laundry listing of volatile chemicals tried it tires is alarming: benzene, toulene, arsenic, acetone or anything else, plus heavy metals that include nickel, copper and cadmium. Older tires may contain lead, at the same time. Under lab conditions, scientists observed the chemicals leached from recycled tires. However, you can find important differences between your circumstances of such studies and the way recycled rubber reacts during actual use:
In response to the concerns raised by earlier recycled rubber studies, many new numerous studies have been conducted specifically addressing recycled rubber employed in playgrounds. These studies replicate field results, which may be dramatically different from results obtained in lab conditions. In these studies, recycled rubber mats have been located safe.
The newest is a two year long study made by four state agencies in Connecticut published in August of 2010. The studies measured leaching and off-gassing of chemicals during normal playground usage, during times of heavy rain, and also in lab settings. While some volatile chemicals were found to become present in the environment above the play surfaces, specifically in indoor play spaces where there is less air circulations, the amount were low. Their studies figured, while levels of volatile chemicals were slightly more than what are known as background levels, they were not high enough being considered a health risk. The only chemical that leached out from the fields with a level greater than what is considered acceptable was zinc, which is not considered dangerous to humans unless excess amounts are ingested.
While the amount of chemicals off-gassing from indoor play spaces was flooring Boston considered below the threshold the location where the chemicals are harmful, it really is worth noting that indoor play spaces showed around ten times as much volatile chemicals in air. If you want to err on the side of caution, you might consider refraining while using recycled rubber mats indoors, where there is a minuscule but present danger that could deem recycled rubber mats unhealthy.
In outdoor playing conditions, however, field research has shown that you can breathe easy understanding that your kids are safer while using mats these days.
Environment and Human Health:
Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection:
USA Today:
Environmental Protection Agency:
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