Rubber playground mats also filled with dangerous chemicals: report

Many rubber mats used on playgrounds are made of recycled tires and may therefore also contain too many dangerous chemicals, two professors of toxicology said to BNR. The health risks of recycled tires were raised by Zembla two weeks ago. Many artificial turfs in the Netherlands are made of rubber granules made from recycled tires. Scientists warned that these rubber granules may contain carcinogenic substances, adding that public health institute RIVM did not properly investigate it. According to Professor Martin van den Berg, the same goes for rubber playground mats. Many of them are made from recycled tires, which contained so-called PAH's, which can be carcinogenic. The RIVM is currently studying the rubber granules used in artificial turfs and whether they pose any health risks.