MD utility reduces fluoride in water, citing Middle East conflict

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The water utility for Maryland’s two largest counties has temporarily reduced the level of fluoride added to drinking water, citing nationwide supply chain challenges partly brought about by the war in Iran.

Beginning Tuesday afternoon, WSSC Water reduced fluoride levels from about 0.7 milligrams per liter to 0.4 milligrams per liter at its Potomac and Patuxent Water Filtration plants. The change impacts 1.9 million customers in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties.

The reduction is linked, in part, to the ongoing war in Iran: A major supplier of hydrofluorosilicic acid, the compound used in community water fluoridation, is in Israel and has “experienced significant operational impacts,” WSSC Water said in a statement.

Despite the change, the water remains safe to drink, said utility spokesperson Luis Maya. “There’s no impact on water quality,” he said in an interview.

Fluoride is typically added to public water supplies to reduce tooth decay and prevent cavities, but it is not mandated by federal or state authorities. Still, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Dental Association support community water fluoridation.

“Proponents of fluoride would say it’s a very low-cost way of reducing cavities for everyone, regardless of their brushing habits or access to dental fluoride treatments,” said Marc Edwards, a civil engineering professor at Virginia Tech who researches potable water.

Edwards said the only impact of the fluoride change is a slight reduction in the water’s ability to prevent cavities. “That’s a consequence of lowering the dosing,” he said.

WSSC Water said it encourages customers to talk to their dentist about alternative sources of fluoride, especially for children and others at higher risk for tooth decay.

Maya said he isn’t sure when WSSC Water will return fluoride levels to normal. “We didn’t get a timeline,” he said.

He said the water utility will still get shipments of hydrofluorosilicic acid – just not as many as usual.

Meanwhile, officials at the Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees the water treatment facility that takes water from the Potomac River – said Wednesday that its water supply has not been impacted. The Washington Aqueduct sells drinkable water to area utilities that serve about 1 million people living in Washington, as well as Fairfax and Arlington counties.

“Despite reports of local fluoride supply disruptions, the Washington Aqueduct’s water treatment remains unaffected,” Cynthia Mitchell, a spokeswoman for the Army Corps of Engineers, said in a statement. “Drinking water continues to meet all EPA safety standards, and there have been no changes to treatment operations.”

Mitchell said officials at the Army Corps’ aqueduct, which produces an average of 150 million gallons of water a day at its treatment plants in D.C., are “actively tracking the supply chain to maintain consistent service to our three wholesale customers: DC Water, Fairfax Water and Arlington County.”

Liam Scott and Dana Hedgpeth report for The Washington Post.