County school administrators hope to reduce the number of scrapes, bumps and bruises that occur on school playgrounds by giving children a softer landing when they fall.
The county school board recently authorized Patsy Oliver, the district’s director of federal programs, to continue with a grant application to seek funds to replace the wood chips that currently cover the primary and elementary school playgrounds with rubber mulch made from recycled waste tires.
Matching grant funds are available from the Kentucky Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet’s Waste Tire Market Development Program for projects that promote the use of recycled waste tires for athletic fields, playgrounds and other applications.
The EPPC utilizes the state’s Waste Tire Trust Fund, an endowment established by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1998 to garner fees from new tire sales) to make those grant funds available, Oliver said.
“Developing the beneficial reuse market for crumb rubber helps Kentucky manage the four million-plus waste tires generated here each year,” said EPPC Secretary LaJuana S. Wilcher.
More than a million dollars in grant funds were awarded last year to 48 school districts, cities and counties, Oliver added.
She and other school officials believe the rubber mulch will prove more beneficial than the wood chips that currently line the playgrounds.
A primary benefit, they say, will be the softer landing surface the ground rubber provides and a reduced risk for injuries.
Of the 3,805 total services performed by the Tiger Clinic (the in-school medical clinic co-sponsored by the Caldwell County Schools’ HOPE and COPE centers and the local health department) in fiscal year 05-06, between 200 and 300 were affiliated in some way with playground injuries, Oliver said.
She also cited a Mayo Clinic report indicating that about 70 percent of playground injuries are a result of falls.
Affiliated side effects, such as mosquito bites and allergies triggered by the mulch itself or the mold and mildew generated from tracking in the moisture-retaining wood, cannot be measured, but are known to be a problem, said Larry Curling, the district’s director of buildings and grounds.
Curling added that the ongoing maintenance of the two playgrounds and the process of replacing the wood chips adds between three and five thousand dollars per year in expenses.
The rubber mulch, Oliver said, will not break down and decompose like bark mulches, will provide bounce and cushioning to prevent the majority of injuries from falls and will minimize dust, mold, mildew and other allergy-related factors.
The rubber mulch will also not promote the growth of fungus, will prevent mosquito infestations and entrapment of water, and will provide excellent weed control. Rain will serve to wash the mulch clean to look like new, she said.
“In addition to these major advantages, you are getting recycling at its best for useless old tires which are otherwise a threat to our environment,” she said.
“We are grateful to the state for taking this innovative step which offers double advantages for our community.”
While the cost of the rubber mulch is more expensive than that of the wood chips, having a better-quality, longer-lasting product would save the district money in the long run, Superintendent Carrell Boyd said.
The size of the grant received, if it is awarded to the district, will determine whether the mulch goes on one or both schools’ playgrounds.
Oliver said she had spoken with administrators in two other districts who already had the rubber mulch, and both were pleased with its performance.
She added that the district would appreciate any letters of support from parents and community members for submission with the grant application.
The letters “could greatly assist us in receiving these funds,” she said. Send letters to Caldwell County Schools, Attention Patsy Oliver, P.O. Box 229, Princeton, Ky. 42445.
