Auckland Council directed to fluoridate Onehunga, Waiuku water supplies

This morning Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield directed Auckland Council and its water and wastewater service provider (Watercare) to fluoridate the Onehunga and Waiuku water supplies.
 
He also made similar directives to 13 other local authorities around the country.
 
Our chief operations officer Mark Bourne says the directive from Dr Bloomfield grants adequate time to carry out upgrades at its Onehunga and Waiuku water treatment plants.
 
“We have until 30 June 2024 to install fluoride dosing systems at our Onehunga Water Treatment Plant and until 30 June 2026 to upgrade our three Waiuku plants and fluoridate the community’s water supply. We’re confident we can meet that deadline.”
 
Bourne says in the past, the decision whether to fluoridate water supplies rested with Auckland’s legacy councils.
 
“When we took responsibility for the region’s water and wastewater services in 2010, we retained the position of the legacy councils and made no changes to fluoridation.
 
“Our responsibility in regards to fluoridation has always been to ensure that where we do dose our treated water with fluoride, it’s done safely and carefully monitored to ensure our water complies with the New Zealand Drinking Water Standards.
 
“We’ve been fluoridating water supplies safely since 1966. At the moment about 94% of Auckland’s water is fluoridated.
 
“We carry out rigorous testing on all Auckland’s water supplies to make sure it is always safe to drink. Our treatment plants use continuous online instruments to monitor fluoride levels in the treated water. And if the fluoride concentration was to deviate from the control limits, alarms are triggered and dosing stops.”