Greater Cincinnati Water Works says it has plenty of fluoride on hand and hasn't been affected by a supply disruption that's causing other public water systems to cut back. Some utilities report scaling back because suppliers are affected by the wars in the Middle East.
"Greater Cincinnati Water Works became aware of the issue that some suppliers are having with fluoride several weeks ago. We've been following it closely. We've been in contact with our supplier, and so far, we haven't experienced any issues with shortages," says Kevin Osborne, public engagement director at Water Works.
Osborne tells WVXU that Water Works' supplier reached out a few weeks ago to let the utility know there might be the potential for such a shortage in the future.
"To date, we have not changed our level of fluoride usage. We have a couple of months of supply on hand. I know we're tracking that closely, and if it turns out that our supplier has difficulties delivering future orders, then we'll reassess the situation at that time," Osborne says. "We don't like to say what our exact chemical usage is for security reasons, but we can say that we use several hundred gallons of fluoride per month."
Last week, Baltimore's water utility announced it was cutting fluoride levels nearly in half. NPR reports it's not the only city facing a shortage of hydrofluorosilicic acid, the chemical used to fluoridate drinking water. Suppliers are having a hard time getting the chemical because of the conflict in the Middle East.
According to NPR, "Israel is one of the world's leading producers of the chemical."
"As we understand it, one of the main suppliers in Israel lost a number of employees temporarily, because they've been called up into service in the Israeli military," Dan Hartnett, chief policy officer at the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies, told the network. "That essentially shut down production at their facility in Israel. They haven't been producing acid. They haven't been able to ship it out."
NPR further reports hydrofluorosilicic acid "is mainly sourced from a small pool of international producers. And the conflict in the Middle East is disrupting the supply chain. Managers of U.S. water systems say the shortage in fluoridation chemicals is unprecedented.
"Companies make the acid in large factories, primarily overseas. U.S. suppliers import and deliver the product."
You can read more from NPR's reporting here.
The U.S. Public Health Service doesn't mandate water fluoridation, but it does encourage it and has set a recommendation of 0.7 mg/L. Public water systems began fluoridating water in the 1940s. Fluoride combines with outer enamel tooth layers to prevent cavities and make teeth stronger and more resistant to decay.
Ohio passed a law in 1969 requiring water fluoridation at levels between 0.8 to 1.3mg/L. Greater Cincinnati Water Works reports its fluoride level is about 0.85 mg/L.
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