Fluoride for Water Systems

This page is a resource for public water systems who fluoridate or plan to fluoridate.

Requirements for Water Fluoridation

• The State Board of Health updated and adopted WAC 246-290-460, fluoridation of drinking water on May 9, 2016. The major changes to the rule include:
  • Purveyors will notify the Department of Health (department) before permanently discontinuing fluoridation.
  • Optimization level is 0.7mg/L.
  • New terminology:
    • Operating Tolerance—Daily sampling results must fall between 0.5–0.9 mg/L.
    • Off Measure—The drinking water certified laboratory results differ by more than 0.2 mg/L from the purveyor's analytical results.
  • Starting July 2016, purveyors must use the required department's Monthly Operating Reports listed below.
• Reports and forms—The required monthly operating reports (MOR), generated in an unprotected Excel format, can easily open the forms and customize them for your use.
  • Monthly Operations Report for Fluoride Acids 331-497 (Excel)
  • Fluoridation Monthly Operations Report Guidance 331-573 (PDF)
  • Fluoride Overfeed Instructions 331-609 (PDF)

Contact Information

Andy Schut, Water Quality Assessment Specialist/Lab Liaison, at 360-236-3197