COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, September 10, 2012

MOTION NO. 3

MOTION: Councillor W. Lavelle

That this Council calls on the Ministers for Environment & Health, as part of the process to establish Irish Water, to commission an independent review and Value for Money assessment of the continuing policy of fluoridation of Irish drinking water.

REPORT:

The Health Act (Fluoridation of Water Supplies) 1960,  No. 46/1960, which requires the mandatory fluoridation of water is the Act governing the fluoridation of Irish drinking water supplies. The fluoride is added to drinking water at the Local Authorities' Treatment Plants and is paid for by the Health Authority in whose area the Treatment Plant is located. 

Water fluoridation is the controlled addition of fluoride to a public water supply to reduce tooth decay.  A 1994 World Health Organization expert committee suggested a level of fluoride from 0.5 to 1.0 mg/L (milligrams per litre), depending on climate. In Ireland the level of fluoride is between 0.6 and 0.8 mg/L having been reduced from between 0.8 and 1.0 mg/L approximately 5 years ago after a review by the Irish Expert Body on Fluorides and Health.  Bottled water typically has unknown fluoride levels, and some domestic water filters remove some or all fluoride.

The safety and benefits of fluoridation have been endorsed by major international organisations like the World Health Organisation, the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (US), the United States Public Health Service, the United States Surgeon General, the Federation Dentaire Internationale/ World Dental Federation, the International Association for  Dental Research and the Royal College of Physicians of England.

One of the principal findings of the Forum on Fluoridation report in Ireland (2002) was that the best available and most reliable scientific evidence indicates that at the maximum permitted level of fluoride in drinking water at 1 part per million or 1 mg/L, human health is not adversely affected. No new studies have emerged to change this finding to date.

Currently there is an independent body reviewing the fluoridation of Irish drinking water supplies on a continuous basis,  known as the Irish Expert Body on Fluorides and Health. A comprehensive up-to-date review can be found on their website www.fluoridesandhealth.ie.

If the motion is passed the terms of the motion will be conveyed to the Minister for Environment, Community & Local Government and the Minister for Health.