posted 03-23-2005 10:37 PM         

City Council Votes To Ban Homeowner's Artificial Turf

MARCO ISLAND, Fla. -- City officials have ended a turf war with a homeowner over artificial grass in his yard with a ban on the synthetic landscaping.

The Marco Island City Council voted 4-2 on Monday night to amend the city's landscape development code to prohibit artificial turf and synthetic turf materials.

In December, Ed Ehlen installed a synthetic green cover across his waterfront lot to conserve water.

Simulated weather tests the city conducted found that heavy rains and flooding would dislodge rubber pellets in the turf used to make the artificial fibers stand up and appear more natural.

City officials said the pellets would then float into neighboring lots and possibly reach the city's sewer system and canals, potentially threatening birds and fish.

The turf, made popular by professional sports franchises in the 1970s, has been banned by neighborhood associations in Clearwater, Tampa, Las Vegas and Hilton Head, S.C.

Ehlen's attorney, Lou Amato, argued the fake grass was not an environmental concern.

"The product is odorless, it doesn't float, it's simply not toxic and it's not carcinogenic," Amato said. "We're not talking about a huge discharge of materials to cause a nuisance. That's what's illegal."

City officials said they will discuss grandfathering in synthetic lawns later this year, after the city releases its official interpretation on its turf concerns.

Three other homeowners in the affluent Gulf of Mexico community have artificial lawns.