ITHACA, NY (607NewsNow) — Records produced by the City of Ithaca has not provided several key pieces of information regarding the two synthetic turf fields installed at Cornell’s Meinig Fieldhouse.
The organization says that the approval from the City of Ithaca’s Planning Board on September 26th, 2024, required Cornell to submit details for the indoor and outdoor artificial turf fields, including the performance shock pad, infill, and blades. Third-party PFAS testing of the artificial turf carpet before it departed from the manufacturer, with results being sent to the planning staff, were also made a requirement.
A Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request made on October 11th, 2025, called for the PFAS test results and testing methods, records identifying the turf manufacturer, brand, and model, and Cornell or contractor documents concerning PFAS content or testing.
An August 17th blog post from Zero Waste Ithaca says the following:
“The City [of Ithaca] says it has provided “all relevant documents” it maintains. Yet those records do not appear to include final product identification for both fields, the complete turf-system components, PFAS test results, testing methods, laboratory reports, sample IDs, chain-of-custody documentation showing who collected and handled each sample, or clear identification of what was tested. Without those records, the public cannot independently determine whether the conditions were actually satisfied.”
Zero Waste Ithaca has requested that the City of Ithaca and Cornell release the complete product and component information for both fields, the testing methods and laboratory results submitted to planning staff, identification of the samples and materials tested, and related Cornell or contractor submittals.
“If the City has these records, it should release them,” Emily Jernigan, Zero Waste Ithaca’s Operations Coordinator, said in a written statement. “If it does not possess them, it should say so clearly and explain how compliance with the Planning Board’s conditions was verified.”
Read more about Zero Waste Ithaca’s request on their blog post here.
