One of the great things about working in the parks and recreation and sports field maintenance professions is being able to provide the opportunity for others to make memories. So many memories are made at the ballpark or soccer pitch and these memories will be carried throughout our lives. While the COVID-19 pandemic has created a major disruption in our daily lives, the time will come when we can get back to helping make those memories.
The Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA) is an industry organization of professionals who are focused on creating and maintaining safe playing fields. Part of our mission is to promote professionalism through education and awareness for the industry. When the country was beginning to shut down, the STMA went to work to help guide not just members but anyone tasked with athletic field maintenance through the crisis. Many parts of the country are beginning to reopen and hopefully begin playing sports again too. As we adjust to the new normal, it is our duty to provide safe fields for our users and a safe environment for our workers.
As staff returns to the fields and play is starting to resume, one of the first things that should take place is conducting a visual tour of all fields to assess safety. Some obvious safety hazards to look for:
- Litter and unsafe debris
- Bare, hard soil
- Standing water
- Weed infestations
- Holes or mounds from animals
- Vandalism such as ruts or trenches
- Unanchored goals
- Sharp edges or protrusions from goals, fencing or bleachers
- Low spots, holes or weed encroachment on baseball and softball infields
- Soil that is too loose or too compacted on baseball and softball infields
The STMA provides safety and maintenance checklists for football and soccer fields as well as baseball and softball fields. These checklists are available for you to utilize when fields become accessible. Use these resources to be sure turfgrass and non-turfgrass areas at your facility are safe for athletes to return to play.
In addition, the STMA has a Playing Conditions Index which is a great tool to help note potential safety hazards that need to be addressed and determine the playability of the field. The tool allows a field manager to maintain records for each field and document information such as turfgrass species, soil type, drainage, pest issues, maintenance activities and safety indicators. The combination of this information generates a Playing Conditions Index (PCI) that provides immediate feedback to sports field managers about areas of the field that need attention if unsafe conditions are present. The PCI addresses the complexities involved in conditioning sports fields for safety, playability and fan enjoyment.
One last topic — and perhaps the most important one — is worker safety and field maintenance practices that support physical distancing and a safe work environment. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a website dedicated to Worker Safety and Support. In most cases, athletic field maintenance is done in small crews, but other safety measures can be implemented including:
- Physical distancing
- Staggering shifts
- Wearing masks
- Increased cleaning in common areas
- Eliminating congregating in common areas
- Taking employee temperatures
- Eliminating sharing of objects used near the face (such as headsets)
I would like to finish by reminding everyone that we are all in this together. NRPA and STMA are great resources for information and networking. Do not forget to reach out to others in the industry to share ideas and concerns, because your peers are probably working through the same issues as you! With that in mind, the STMA recently opened a guest membership program. This six-month membership program is open to anyone and will provide access to STMA’s learning programs and a number of past conference presentations. The STMA felt it was very important to share our resources with peers who are not members to help the industry recover and advance. Now, go back to helping create memories, but please be safe.
James Bergdoll, CSFM, is the director of parks maintenance for City of Chattanooga Public Works and the secretary and treasurer of the Sports Turf Managers Association.