Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
August 1, 2007
4. Water Quality
By Gig Conaughton, staff writer
LOS ANGELES -- Regional water leaders, including some from
Adding fluoride to Metropolitan's water supply will mean that, essentially, all county residents who do not rely upon wells for their water will have fluoridated supplies. Currently, only
Bob Muir, spokesman for the Los Angeles-based Metropolitan Water District, said the massive water supplier met with representatives from its customers Tuesday to tell them the agency would start fluoridating its water in phases starting Oct. 1.
Muir said Tuesday that the agency hadn't been able to begin fluoridating because it had to complete a multimillion-dollar upgrade of its five water treatment plants. The project includes improvements at the R.A. Skinner Treatment Plant in Temecula that provides
Metropolitan is
Metropolitan board members voted to fluoridate its water supplies after sometimes heated hearings in February 2003.
Proponents hailed the vote as a long-overdue public health protection. Critics said the decision amounted to forced medication.
Fluoride is a naturally occurring chemical compound that has been used for decades in toothpaste and that dentists have applied to patients' teeth to reduce the risk of cavities and prevent tooth decay. The compound has also been put into water supplies of Americans across the nation since the 1940s.
Proponents say there are no documented cases of harmful side effects.
When Metropolitan board members voted to fluoridate in 2003, officials from the California Department of Health Services said the leading cause of all illness -- not just cavities and dental problems -- was dental illness.
However, many fluoride opponents argue that fluorine, the element found in all fluorides, is poisonous and causes cancer.
Gary Eaton, director of operations for the San Diego County Water Authority -- the county's principal water supplier and Metropolitan's largest customer -- said that officials from the national Centers of Disease Control and Prevention were at Tuesday's meeting and told officials that fluoride was safe in small doses. The CDC states that the "optimal" fluoride level to prevent tooth decay was between 0.7 and 1.2 parts per million.
The agency plans to fluoridate the water at a level of about 0.8 parts per million, he said.
"Hundreds of studies have been done to indicate it's not a problem when fluoride is put in the water at recommended dosages," Eaton said.
Eaton said that Metropolitan officials had said Monday that Skinner's supplies would start being fluoridated Oct. 8.
Eaton said that the Water Authority intended to hold a meeting Aug. 8 to brief its member agencies.
Muir and Eaton said that both agencies planned to roll out public relations campaigns to make sure the public knows what's coming. However, Muir said, Metropolitan board members do not plan to revisit the issue or their 2003 vote.
Muir said Metropolitan planned to create a Web site devoted to the fluoridation subject by the end of the week.
"Certainly, we understand the concerns that some members of the community have," he said. "But the bottom line is that we're doing this at the request of the medical and dental health communities. That's why we're making this move."
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/08/01/news/sandiego/10_34_077_31_07.txt
No comments:
Post a Comment