from Your News:
Yorktown and Somers in New York are the first towns to halt water fluoridation following a federal judge’s ruling citing potential risks to children’s intellectual development.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Yorktown and Somers, two municipalities in New York state, have become the first in the U.S. to suspend water fluoridation following a federal court ruling that raises concerns about fluoride’s potential impact on children’s intellectual development. The decision comes after U.S. District Judge Edward Chen issued a ruling earlier this week, ordering the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to address the potential risks associated with water fluoridation.
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Yorktown Supervisor Ed Lachterman announced the suspension of fluoride in the town’s water supply on Thursday, citing both the ruling and long-standing concerns from residents. “Our priority is the safety and well-being of our community, and we believe it is prudent to pause fluoridation to further assess its potential impacts,” said Lachterman in the statement.
The neighboring town of Somers, which shares a water system with Yorktown, has also halted fluoridation. Somers Supervisor Robert Scorrano praised the decision, noting, “Removing fluoride from Somers’ drinking water would give residents the freedom to choose their own sources of fluoride, ensuring personal control over their health decisions.”
The decision to suspend fluoridation in both towns comes only a month after the Northern Westchester Joint Water Works had reintroduced fluoride into Yorktown’s water system following upgrades to two treatment plants. The facilities had been using Hydrofluorosilicic Acid, aiming for a fluoride dosage of 0.7 milligrams per liter, which meets federal health recommendations.
Judge Chen’s ruling, which sided with advocacy groups concerned about fluoride’s health impacts, emphasizes the need for the EPA to evaluate whether fluoride poses a hazard to public health. The ruling states that the EPA must ensure a sufficient margin between hazardous exposure levels and those present in drinking water, warning that “fluoride is associated with reduced IQ” based on scientific literature.
However, Chen clarified that the ruling does not definitively assert that fluoridated water causes lower IQ in children, leaving the nature of the EPA’s response to the findings open to interpretation.
The towns’ decisions also follow a recent report from the National Toxicology Program, which found a link between higher fluoride exposure—at levels of approximately 1.5 milligrams per liter—and a reduction in children’s IQ. The federal agency’s report concluded that “higher estimated fluoride exposures… are consistently associated with lower IQ in children.”
