IN the mid-March edition, we shared a short write-up detailing possible environmental concerns surrounding the laying of synthetic turf.

Ku-ring-gai Councillor, Sam Ngai, released a statement in support of the development, while Wahroonga Independent Candidate, Kristyn Haywood, expressed opposition to the project.

The Post have now examined the official REF (Review of Environmental Factors) for the project.

According to the REF, Council opened the project to community feedback in 2020. At the time, 96% of people that lived within a 500m radius of the proposed facility supported the proposal, and 3% were against it.

From this feedback, reasons for support included improvement to the ground’s poor condition, reduction of injuries to sports players, reducing the cancellation of games, and positive impacts to the drainage issues in the area.

Council concluded reasons against the project included environmental impacts, impacts on players (heat and injuries), flooding issues at the site, and impact on casual users of the site.

On the 16th of March, an Extraordinary Council Meeting was called to debate pausing the project. Councillor Kay and Councillor G. Taylor moved to place the project on hold until ‘council receives advice from the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service that it supports and does not have any unresolved concerns about the project.’ However, the amendment was declared lost with six councillors voting against stalling the development. In short, the project is going ahead as planned.

Norman Griffiths Oval is the home-ground for West Pymble FC a club affiliated with the Northern Suburbs Football Association (NSFA). The NSFA  is a primary stakeholder of the project and is a supporter of the upgrade.

NSFA stated, “Norman Griffiths Oval has long struggled with drainage and grass coverage - It comes after the 2022 season was significantly affected by rain throughout the first half of the year.”

NSFA CEO, Edward Ferguson, added that, “the synthetic field and lighting upgrade at Norman Griffiths Oval would triple the number of hours the field can be used per week, in addition to essentially eliminating wet weather closures.”

Still, some of the community are concerned about environmental impacts.

Turf One are the contractors for this project; they are using Field Turf’s synthetic grass. They largely use cork infill in their turf which, according to their website, “is a natural infill that is environment friendly and non-toxic. It is a recyclable and sustainable product that is harvested from the cork oak tree every nine years, without harming the trees.”                                              

As stated in the mid-March article, Kristyn Haywood – Independent Candidate for Wahroonga — highlighted possible negatives to laying synthetic turf, including blocked drainage and cork infill contamination into the nearby natural area.

According to the REF, conducted by Willow Tree Planning, they have determined that, “The proposed activity is not likely to have a significant impact on the environment and therefore an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is not required.” However, the REF did highlight the SES’ concern regarding flood hazard risk and have stated that the concerns, “will be addressed through incorporation of flood detention under the field.” This is the only environmental concern seemingly highlighted in the REF.

The Post contacted Ku-ring-gai Council to find out for certain what turf they are planning to use and how they approached community consultation. A spokesperson stated,“The project was previously approved by the Council in February 2022. Following last week’s meeting Councillors voted to adopt the recommendation of the tabled report and the upgrade will proceed as planned.

The turf to be used for the project is Green Field Turf RGF XM7 60-10.5. This product is an advanced form of synthetic turf and cork infill will be used which is non-toxic to the environment.”

Work on the project is expected to take around nine months; to be completed in November 2023.

If you would like to view Ku-ring-gai Council’s information on the Norman Griffiths Oval project, visit www.krg.nsw.gov.au/Planning-and-development/Projects-and-current-works/Pymble/Norman-Griffiths-Sportsground where all key documents can be accessed.

To view the extraordinary council meeting minutes visit www.krg.nsw.gov.au/Council/Council-meetings/Minutes-and-agendas.