Water fluoridation in Australia

Fluoridation in Tasmania was initially regulated under the Public Health Act of 1953.[9] The Tasmanian Government set up a Royal Commission to look into Fluoridation in 1966 and the report was published in 1968.[10] The Royal Commission recommended that fluoridation should be a state responsibility. The Royal Commission stated that "Fluoridation must be a decision of the State Government. It is not a decision for a referendum or for local councils as people simply do not have the expertise in that. For a State Government to refer this decision off to a referendum or to local government would be an abrogation of the State's responsibility."[11]^(26:25) The Fluoridation Act of 1968 was passed and gained royal assent in January 1969 [12] and it regulates the fluoridation of drinking water in Tasmania. Almost all (98%) all public water supplies in Tasmania are fluoridated although approximately 10% of the residents do not have access to public water supplies.[13] Under the Act, the need to add fluoride to a water supply is assessed by a fluoridation committee, which then provides a recommendation to the Health Minister. The Health Minister may then choose to direct the water authority to add fluoride to the water.

The first town in Australia to fluoridate its water supply was Beaconsfield, Tasmania in 1953.[11][14] It is understood that the impetus to fluoridate the water came from the Municipal chemist, Frank Grey, who was prompted to act when an opera singer advised him not to let his daughter's teeth be pulled if he wished her to continue singing. This was after he had received a note from a visiting dentist (to the local school) that he wanted to extract a tooth from his daughter.[15][11]^(2:07)

Approximately 95% of the population has access to fluoridated water (September 2011). Fluoridation commenced in New South Wales with Yass in 1956,[16] with Sydney fluoridating in 1968.[3] The use of fluoride is regulated by the Fluoridation of Public Water Supplies Act 1957,[17] and the Fluoridation of Public Water Supplies Regulation 2007.[18]

In November 2013, Byron Shire Council decided to not add fluoride to its water supply.[19]

Fluoride was initially recommended to be added to the Canberra water supply in December 1961 by the ACT Advisory Council, however the recommendation was not accepted. In July 1962 the NSW Premier, RJ Heffron wrote to the Prime Minister Robert Menzies "advising that his state was keen to pursue fluoridation, and if the Commonwealth was not supportive it could be used as a weapon 'for the small but vocal groups who are opposed to the introduction of this public health measure.'" The ACT Advisory Council re-examined the issue and in May 1963 again recommended the fluoridation of the water supply. Doug Anthony advised that the Commonwealth Government was proceeding with fluoridation plans for the Canberra water supply in May 1964.[20]

Fluoride has been added to water supplies in Canberra and the City of Queanbeyan since 1964. Queanbeyan, while in New South Wales shares its water supply with Canberra. There was a brief period in 1989 where fluoridation was suspended following a formal review of the effectiveness of fluoridation on oral health.[3] As only one water supplier provides all of the water for these areas, the percentage of the population with access to fluoridated water has always been 100% during the times in which it was added.

Water fluoridation is regulated by the Fluoridation of Public Water Supplies Act 1966.[21] The act is administered by the Western Australian Department of Health through the Fluoridation of Public Water Supplies Advisory Committee. The minister for Health can only direct water be fluoridated on the advice of the committee.[22]

Water fluoridation was introduced in Western Australia 1968.[23] As of 2016, around 92% of the population is provided with fluoridated water through a drinking water supply.[23] Western Australia has a number of areas where no additional fluoride is added and include: Halls Creek, Marble Bar, Onslow, Paraburdoo, Tom Price, Meekatharra, Carnarvon, Bremer Bay, Leonora and Laverton.[23]

While the water supply in Dunsborough, in the south west of Western Australia, is de-fluoridated to the optimal level ( 0.6 to 0.9 milligram per litre). Dunsborough gets its water from two aquifers and only the Sue Aquifer has fluoride above the optimum level.[23]

Water fluoridation in South Australia is administered through government policy rather than legislation.[24] It is the responsibility of SA Water to administer fluoridation with South Australian water Supplies.[25] In many cases water derived from bores is not fluoridated.[26]

Water fluoridation commenced in Adelaide in 1971. There is no legal requirement to add fluoride to drinking water supplies. Currently, March 2020, SA Health states that "90% of the state’s communities have access to reticulated water with appropriate levels of fluoride".[27]

Fluoride has been added to public water supplies in Darwin (since 1972), Katherine, and Gove. Similarly to South Australia, there is no legal requirement to add fluoride to the Northern Territory's water supplies, but a position paper [28] published in November 2010 strongly encourages water providers to add fluoride where possible. Supplies south of Elliott have naturally occurring fluoride at levels sufficient to provide an oral health benefit.[29] Approximately 9% of the population of Northern Territory have naturally fluoridated water.[3] As of 2012, 70% of the population in the Northern Territory has access to fluoridated water, and there are plans to extend access to more residents by 2015.[30]

Fluoride was first added to the drinking water for the Victorian town of Bacchus Marsh in 1962, with Melbourne beginning fluoridation in 1977.[31] The towns of Portland, Nhill, Port Fairy, Barnawartha, and Kaniva have naturally occurring fluoride in their drinking water.[32] In August 2012 approximately 90% of the Victorian population had access to fluoridated water.[33] The fluoridation of Victoria's drinking water supplies is regulated by the Health (Fluoridation) Act 1973, by the Department of Health.[34]

Queensland residents served with community water fluoridation, 2011

On 29 November 2012 the Queensland Parliament, with a Liberal National Party government, reversed the previous Labor government's mandate requiring certain public potable water supplies to add fluoride to the water. As a consequence of these changes local councils in Queensland have the choice to add fluoride to drinking water supplies, similar to the conditions in place under the previous legislation. In January 2013 the Cairns council decided to discontinue water fluoridation.[35]

The previous government, under Queensland Premier Anna Bligh, announced on 5 December 2007 that the mandatory fluoridation of most of Queensland's water supplies will begin in 2008.[36] When it was enacted the Water Fluoridation Act 2008 required the addition of fluoride to any water supply supplying potable water to at least 1000 members of the public, unless an exemption is granted based on safety or naturally occurring levels that meet the required levels.[37] The fluoridation of drinking water supplies is regulated by Queensland Health,[38] with implementation supported by the former Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation.[39] Prior to this legislation Queensland was the only Australian state without a formal statewide program for the addition of fluoride to drinking water.

The accompanying Water Fluoridation Regulation 2008 listed 134 drinking water supplies that were to be fluoridated by 31 December 2012.[40] Of the drinking water supplies listed in the Regulation, 32 comprised the SEQ Water Grid located in Southeast Queensland. The fluoridation of these supplies by the end of 2009 accounted for the largest increase in people currently receiving fluoridated water in Queensland (approximately 2.6 million people in 2006 or 68% of the Queensland population).

Before the 2008 legislation the addition of fluoride to water supplies was regulated by the Fluoridation of Water Supplies Act 1963.[41] Under this legislation only 5% of drinking water supplies were fluoridated. Queensland was unique in that it did not pursue water fluoridation like all the other Australian States and Territories, with only 7 of the 850 fluoridated supplies in 1984 operating in Queensland.[4] Those supplies operated in the towns of Biloela, Dalby, Gatton, Mareeba, Moranbah, and Townsville/Thuringowa, with some adding fluoride to their drinking water since 1972. A few of these towns stopped adding fluoride prior to the Water Fluoridation Act 2008.[42]

Several areas of Queensland, such as Julia Creek, Quilpie, Thargomindah and Adavale are known to have naturally occurring fluoride present in their drinking water, a characteristic that has been studied since the late 1920s.[43][44]

In 2009 an accident occurred at the North Pine treatment plant, and some homes received water having many times the recommended level of fluoride.[45][46]

Gladstone Regional Council has voted to remove fluoride from their water supply.[47]

Mackay council votes to remove fluoride from their water supply.[48]