Sludge Watch ==> US: Germs in the playground

[Maureen Reilly]

Sludgewatch Admin:

Allowing sewage sludge into composts and soil conditioners used on 
playgrounds and playing fields and schools and parks puts the public further 
at risk.


Not only germs are at issue...also PCBs, heavy metals like arsenic and lead, 
and other toxic compounds.
.........................


US: Playing with danger: Germy playgrounds
06.sep.07
ABC News

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/BacktoSchool/story?id=3565507&page=1

"Good Morning America" investigated playground cleanliness across the nation 
by collecting 60 samples at public playgrounds. The samples were tested to 
determine which playground was the cleanest and which had the most germs.
Of those samples, 59 had evidence of bacteria or mold that could make 
children sick tests showed.
The story explains that "GMA" tested 12 playgrounds in four cities 
including: Washington, D.C., and suburban Virginia and Maryland; two in New 
York City; and at three parks in Chicago.

The places children are more likely to touch were swabbed and samples were 
collected from a variety of places such as swings, slides and seesaws in 
Washington, D.C. Monkey bars and jungle gyms were swabbed in New York, while 
steering wheels and tire swings were tested in Chicago.
Finally, in Phoenix baby swings and a rock climbing wall were tested.
All the swabs were sent to a lab at New York University School of Medicine 
where Philip Tierno gave the results.

"All representatives had evidence of fecal flora," he said.
That means human feces was present everywhere and where there is feces, a 
chance of illness exists.

Salmonella, shigella, hepatitis A and a norovirus also were found in some of 
the samples.
Thirty samples tested contained E.coli. In fact, 11 of Chicago's 15 samples 
came back with bacteria.
And children can ingest all this bacteria if they put their hands in their 
mouths.
"GMA" also found bacteria that came from people's skin and sinuses.

Tierno was further cited as saying the testing uncovered so many germs 
because of the time of year. Combining hot, humid weather and lots of 
visitors is a recipe for growth, experts say.
Of all the cities tested, Chicago's playgrounds had the heaviest bacteria 
growth followed by Phoenix, according to the NYU analysis.