What's happening to BC Place's grass field used for the World Cup?

They brought in grass for the World Cup games, but it's already left BC Place.

Less than a week after the FIFA World Cup's last game in Vancouver, and the grass in BC Place is gone. The turfgrass was one of the requirements for the stadium as a host field; all World Cup games are played on real grass. While the green part is natural grass, there's actually a hybrid system in place underneath using an artificial mesh and sand to create a consistent and hardy playing surface.

The grass was grown at Bos Sod Farms in Abbotsford. The family-run company specializes in growing grass for athletic fields or residential use, growing a variety of options and offering custom turf if needed. While it's mostly natural, there's actually a mesh used.

For the World Cup, they grew the field at their farm in Abbotsford before moving it to BC Place in May, just after the last Whitecaps home game in the stadium. Two months later, it's been removed. The turf was a temporary situation just meant for the World Cup, and when the BC Lions return on July 25, they'll be playing on the artificial surface BC Place has been using for years.

Where is the turf now? Unfortunately for anyone hoping to get some time on the field that Romelu Lukaku, Jonathan David, and James Rodríguez played on, the turf is heading back to the Fraser Valley. "It will then be transported back to Bos Sod in Abbotsford, the same company FIFA/BC Place engaged to grow it," reads an email from a FIFA spokesperson.

"The synthetic fibres will then be removed and recycled, while the natural materials will be repurposed." In other words, it's being dismantled. "We are happy to share that we are investing in a sustainable composting and recycling process that will return approximately 99 per cent of the organic material from the hybrid grass pitch to BC soil," reads an email from BC PavCo, which runs BC Place.

"We are also currently exploring recycling many of our other remaining FIFA field of play materials too."