Palisade Eliminates Fluoride From Drinking Water

PALISADE, Colo.- Palisade has stopped adding fluoride to its drinking water supply.

After running out of the chemical material back in March, the city had to make a decision.

Frank Watt, public works director, said, “We asked the question, are we achieving our purpose of providing the safest drinking water possible? The addition of fluoride did not help us achieve that goal.”

Other cities, including Grand Junction, have already eliminated fluoride.

“The addition of fluoride doesn’t make the water safer … does not improve the quality of water. It has known health benefits, but it also has known hazards,” Watt said.

Watt told NewsChannel 5, “It is highly acidic. It can burn your skin, burn your eyes. There were safety concerns for our operators at the water plant, as well as the public.”

Still, there’s no way to eliminate fluoride completely. Watt said, “There is naturally occurring fluoride in our water. It’s not like there will be no fluoride at all … it’s just that we won’t be supplementing it at all to get to a higher level, that say, the state health department would like to see us achieve.”

Officials say if you are worried about reduced fluoride levels in the drinking water, there are products such as mouthwash and toothpaste to supplement that loss.