Byrdstown water plant officials are maintaining a minimal fluoride dosage in the local drinking water system to supplement naturally occurring levels while following state guidelines.
Water Plant Superintendent Buster Harmon said the process of adding fluoride to the water supply is a simple task that does not significantly impact the daily workload of plant employees. Harmon said the facility monitors natural fluoride coming into the plant and adds a supplement to ensure a consistent minimum dose is distributed throughout the system.
“What fluoride we’re using, we’re using it at a minimum dose, small dose, a very small dose,” Harmon said. “And it’s not anything that would harm the public, as far as I’m concerned as a minimum dose because you’ve got natural fluoride in the system, out in the environment, and we’re trying to maintain that level of natural fluoride that’s coming in.”
Harmon said the maximum amount of fluoride present in the Byrdstown system reaches 0.5 parts per million. Harmon said the decision to include fluoride in the water is a choice made by the municipality, which must then adhere to specific state legislature requirements if they choose to add it.
“It’s a choice you can either add it or you don’t have to add it,” Harmon said. “So it’s whatever the city or municipality or whatever wants to do. If they want to add it, then they have to follow state guidelines. If they don’t want to follow state guidelines, then they don’t have to add it.”
Harmon said the plant would not be negatively affected if leadership decided to change the levels or remove the additive entirely.
“That’s not going to bother us at all,” Harmon said. “I mean, and I don’t see for them raising the levels, anything, they’ll do away with it.”
Harmon said fluoride has been a controversial topic for many years and is often viewed as a health issue or described by some as mass-medicating. Harmon said there have been several bills introduced in the state legislature over the past few years aiming to ban the use of fluoride in water systems.
“I mean, it’s been doing it for years, I don’t see any health effects for it,” Harmon said. “I don’t see a benefit or I don’t see a, or a positive effect for it. I don’t see a negative effect or I don’t see a positive effect.”
Harmon said operations at the plant are currently running smoothly as he considers a potential retirement.
