03/09/2009: "Crumb Rubber Begone!"

(Volunteers begin the removal of crumb rubber from play area)

The use of crumb rubber as an underlayment at the Friday Harbor Elementary School playground may still be a controversial issue for some, but with it’s removal this week, it is now an academic argument.

Starting over the March 9th and 10th weekend, volunteer crews and donated equipment (photo above) began the messy job of removing crumb rubber from the playground area. Once the rubber crumbs were disturbed, a strong rubber smelling odor was obvious enough for one of the workers to paraphrase a line from the 1979 film Apocalypse Now, when he said “I love the smell of crumb rubber in the morning.”

Crumb rubber is small granular piece of rubber made from recycled tires. Concerns about the possible health risks posed by children playing on, and with, the material, resulted in a proposal by members of the community to remove it at no cost to the school district.

The San Juan Island School District Board of Directors (Board) agreed the product could be removed, if done under the provisions and conditions outlined in a letter to the Editor, in which the Board agreed look at a plan to replace the rubber with an alternative.

A new group formed to meet the demands of the Board letter, and received donations and pledges necessary to raise over $7,000.00 replace the rubber with a wood fiber product, and a large volunteer work force of labor and equipment necessary to complete the job, and to do so with no cost to the tax payer.