Fluoride may soon be added to Hiawassee water supply

HIAWASSEE, Ga. – Fluoride may soon be added to the local water supply. Hiawassee Mayor Liz Ordiales announced the news during the March city council work session. The City of Hiawassee received notice from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) that fluoride has not been an additive in the water supply in over 20 years.

“During the routine inspection, it was discovered that the Hiawassee Water System did not add fluoride as a treatment process,” EPD Environmental Compliance Specialist Alisha Bailey wrote in an email obtained by FYN. “According to the current ORC, Mr. Randall Thomas, Hiawassee WTP has not treated the water with fluoride in over 20 years. All potable water sources must be fluoridated, according to the Rules for Safe Drinking Water 391-3-5-.16 Fluoridation. Amended. In certain cases, some water systems had received a waiver from the state or there was a vote within the board of the water system as to not add fluoride to the drinking water.”

Mayor Ordiales responded to EPD via email, including a copy of city council minutes from 1983, informing that a vote to reject local fluoridation had taken place 36 years prior. The mayor relayed during the council meeting, however, that the addition of fluoride to the water supply is a state mandate.

Upon objection from a citizen in attendance, Mayor Ordiales said the city would prefer not to fluoridate as to avoid the incurred expense.

Water fluoridation began in some parts of the United States in 1945, after scientists noted that people living in areas with higher water fluoride levels had fewer cavities. Starting in 1962, the United States Public Health Service (PHS) recommended that public water supplies contain fluoride to help prevent tooth decay.

Fluoride is now used in the public drinking water supplied to about 3 out of 4 Americans. The decision to add fluoride to drinking water is made at the state or local level. The types of fluoride added to different water systems include fluorosilicic acid, sodium fluorosilicate, and sodium fluoride.

Fluoride is not required in all drinking water sources in the United States, but the levels of fluoride in water are regulated by several government agencies.

Starting in 1962, the United States Public Health Service (PHS) recommended that public water supplies contain between 0.7 and 1.2 milligrams of fluoride per liter (mg/L) of drinking water to help prevent tooth decay. This recommendation was updated in 2015 to a fluoride level of 0.7 mg/L, The change was made in part to account for the fact that people now get more fluoride from other sources (such as toothpaste) than in the past. Natural drinking water sources in the US have an average fluoride level of about 0.2 mg/L, although in some places it can be much higher.