SoCal Artificial Turfs Team
Artificial turf, pavers, and landscaping specialists serving the Inland Empire.
Last updated: 2026-03-25
Last updated: March 2026
What Did the Vancouver Study Actually Find?
A March 2026 study in Metro Vancouver found that artificial turf fields leach 6PPD-quinone - a tire rubber derivative - into stormwater, killing coho salmon in nearby streams. The chemical comes from crumb rubber infill made of recycled tires, not from the turf fibers themselves. Residential turf with non-rubber infill does not carry this risk.
The study tested runoff from 12 municipal sports fields that use styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) crumb infill. Those black granules you see on soccer fields at parks. Concentrations of 6PPD-quinone hit 0.8 micrograms per liter - well above the lethal threshold for coho salmon at 0.095 µg/L.
This matters in California because we already have state legislators pushing AB-1423 to restrict synthetic turf. But the conversation keeps conflating municipal sports fields with residential turf installations. They are not the same product.
Does This Apply to Residential Turf in the Inland Empire?
Short answer: no. And here's why.
The crumb rubber infill causing the problem in Vancouver is made from shredded car tires. It's cheap, which is why municipalities use it on 80,000+ sq ft sports complexes. We stopped carrying SBR crumb rubber three years ago.
On our residential installs across San Jacinto, Hemet, Menifee, and Temecula, we use two infill types:
- Silica sand - mined quartz, no chemical additives. We use 1.5 to 2 lbs per square foot on standard lawn replacements. This is the same material used in pool filters.
- Durafill antimicrobial infill - acrylic-coated sand with Microban for pet turf applications. Zero rubber content.
Neither contains 6PPD, PFAS, or heavy metals. We can show you the SDS sheets for every infill we stock.
What About the Turf Fibers Themselves?
The Vancouver study focused on infill runoff, not fiber composition. But since the California PFAS bill targets turf broadly, it's worth knowing what you're getting.
Our primary product line uses polyethylene monofilament yarn - the same plastic in milk jugs. No PFAS coatings. No lead stabilizers. We switched away from polypropylene blends in 2024 because they break down faster in Inland Empire heat. At 115 degrees on a south-facing yard in San Jacinto, polypropylene starts curling within 4 years. Polyethylene holds up 8 to 12.
We did a turf replacement last month on a 10-year-old yard off Hewitt Street in San Jacinto. The original installer had used a nylon-poly blend with SBR infill. The crumb rubber had migrated into the base rock and the turf was matted flat. That old product is exactly what these studies are flagging.
How California's Regulations Actually Work
AB-1423 is still in committee as of March 2026. If it passes, it would restrict PFAS-containing synthetic turf on state-funded projects - schools, public parks, municipal fields. Private residential installations are not in the current language.
Riverside County has no additional local restrictions. HOAs in master-planned communities like Four Seasons in Hemet and Audie Murphy Ranch in Menifee have their own architectural review, but we haven't seen a single HOA ban residential turf. Most encourage it because of water savings.
The average Inland Empire household saves 30,000 to 50,000 gallons of water per year after converting 1,000 sq ft of natural grass to turf. At EMWD's current tier 3 rate of $6.18 per HCF, that's $150 to $250 off your annual water bill.
What We Tell Customers Who Ask
We get this question on about one in five estimates now. Especially from families with kids and dog owners.
Our answer: ask your installer what infill they use, and ask for the spec sheet. If they can't tell you, that's your answer. We keep product data on every material we install and we'll walk you through it at the estimate.
We installed over 85 residential turf yards across the Inland Empire in 2025. Every single one used PFAS-free turf with sand-based infill. The products exist. You just have to use an installer who carries them.
If you want to see the actual materials before we install, our San Jacinto shop has samples of every turf grade and infill type we stock. Walk-ins welcome, or schedule a free estimate and we'll bring samples to your yard.