July 3, 2024

Concord Township Council Tuesday night approved Garnet Valley School District’s land development plan. Several council members and other residents expressed concerns, but after more than an hour of talking, the measure passed 5-1 with 19 of conditions, several of which addressed those concerns.

The plan entails the demolition or partial demolition of existing buildings and other existing features, adding three athletic fields, and four parking areas. Those athletic fields would be at the high school and would be turf fields using ground tire material. Bus parking would be moved from the middle school to the old Pennington site on Bethel Road.

According to Project Manager David Stewart, the older sections of the Pennington building would be demolished. Not only would the district’s fleet of buses be moved to the Pennington site, but another parking lot would also be built on the property. Those parking areas would allow for parking 92 buses and 154 spaces for cars.

He also said there would be a fourth driveway added at the Pennington site and a new paved pedestrian pathway from Pennington along Betel Road to the high school.

John Crossan and John Gillespie, council’s two co-vice presidents, as well as several residents, expressed environmental concerns with the use of rubber for the turf fields and with the extra paving needed for the new parking areas. Of chief concern was that of chemicals leaching out of the rubber and entering the aquafer and polluting well water.

One chemical in question is 6PPD, an additive used in rubber for tires, but can react with ozone to create 6PPD-quinone, which the EPA considers toxic. Several people expressed fear that rainwater would cause 6PPD to leach out and contaminate their wells.

A Cobbler Lane resident (whose name could not be heard clearly) who said he’s a trained scientist, said a recent CDC article said the rubber used in turf fields has 96 chemicals, 10 of which are carcinogenic, and several others are microplastic, something the European Union has recently banned for use in products. And this includes the rubber fill used in fields, he said.

Several other residents brought up the same concerns. Township solicitor Hugh Donaghue interjected at one point to say he had done some research on the matter with the EPA.

“What you’re talking about microplastics, and what you’re saying is true, they’re being discharged. But the majority of microplastics are being discharged by all of us driving on the roads every day,” he said. Microplastics are primarily coming from the road surfaces and tires from the cars.”

He added “There’s not one standard, anywhere in the United States that prohibits the use of these [types of] fields…The point is, what the township can enforce legally. You can’t just make up a standard. The council is trying to do due diligence and went out of the way to research this the best way.”

After a prolonged discussion about. the microplastics contaminating wells, Donaghue suggested that if residents tested their well water for contaminants today, and then tested periodically in the future, they might have an argument for a legal claim if the levels of contaminants increase.

Those concerns led to dialogues between attorney Michael Puppio who was representing the school district, and council members Gillespie and Crossan.

In response to Gillespie’s concerns about the environmental aspect, Puppio said the district’s goal is to plan for the future, it’s also to comply with all regulations.

“This plan has been in the works, publicly, for well over two years…We have worked closely with your township engineer. With regard to the environmental topic, there is not one member of the elected school board that believes for one moment that what they are proposing is harmful to the environment,” he said.

Puppio continued by saying because there are no applicable prohibitions on the use of 6PPD, the township cannot just prohibit its use.

“When a plan is in, you cannot respectfully change the rules. It’s not allowed.” But he added that if his client is incorrect about their assessment regarding the environmental concerns, “We’ll remediate it.”

There followed another discussion with Crossan who wanted extra testing done and offered that as an amendment. However, the rest of council voted down Crossan’s request.

Among the conditions imposed on the applicant is a requirement to test for baseline levels of 6PPD-quinone, and then test again after years one, three, and five.

The condition further reads: “If the 6PPD-quinone levels are unsafe pursuant to EPA and/or Pennsylvania DEP Rules and Regulations and it is determined by the township engineer and district engineer, that said increase is the result of the district’s turf fields and/or new bus lot, the district shall remediate/correct the condition pursuant to DEP or EPA procedures and timelines. In the event the township engineer and district engineer cannot agree, the Court of Common Pleas in Delaware County will appoint a third engineer.;”

Another condition requires the district to abide by any updates the state or federal governments impose.

“Applicant further agrees that should the United States Department of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and/or the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or its agencies determine and/or makes such regulations that modify, restrict, or mandate removal of tire wear artificial turf fields, applicant will comply with the same pursuant to DEP or EPA timelines and procedures.”

Other conditions deal with lighting, landscaping, and how buses shall be parked to avoid excessive use of backup alarms in the morning. Lights and amplified sound are not permitted on the new fields, as is the use of the fields after dark.