For use as a sports field, natural grass has many advantages over artificial turf. But few people can name even one. The idea of listing the pros and cons of each can be lost in the head-long rush to install artificial turf.

Some people are all about the status of having an artificial field. Others are honestly confused. The practice of calling an expanse of artificial turf a “field” conveys to people that it has all the features and benefits of a natural grass field only better. It is like claiming a newer model of a certain car will be similar to an older one, but a bit better.

The problem is that artificial turf is more like a floor than a field. If you think of natural turf as a four-door sedan, artificial turf is an 18-wheeler. They are both vehicles, but they sure are different and it depends on what you want from your vehicle.

If you are a parent, board member or taxpayer and you are forming an opinion or voting to spend a lot of money on artificial turf, you have a responsibility to be well informed. A person cannot absorb and digest issues about artificial turf in a short web session or from a single informational meeting. There is no single source you can go to and most architectural firms are only a little informed. It is going to take hours of work and thinking.