NZ - Hamilton looks at non-fluoride tap

Non-fluoridated water supply points could be on the way for Hamiltonians who don't want it in their water.

But the possibility hinges on whether Hamilton City Council staff can provide them for a budget of $60,000 for installation and an operating budget of $5000 a year.

A water cooler-type facility is the favoured method, as council staff said a fluoride-free source at the Water Treatment Plant would cost $200,000 to $300,000.

The water cooler type facility the would use de-ionising technology to provide the water at a rate of about one litre a minute, a council report said.

Each one would cost $10,000 to $15,000 to install and about $3000 a year to operate, a staff report said.

And they could be in a council building or anywhere that had the power, water and wastewater facilities required.
About a third of Hamiltonians had voted against fluoride, Cr Philip Yeung said.

"What this motion is about is to give those people a choice," he said. "If the report comes back from staff saying it's over that [budget amount] we're not going to do it."

But if staff could make it work for under $60,000 it could go ahead.

Cr Rob Pascoe suggested the water cooler option would lead to big queues, an idea that was supported by Cr Garry Mallett.

"People might go out there with tankers and fill them up," Mallett said. "It's not practical to go out there every morning with a three-litre water bottle."

Commercial operators might also want the water and he even suggested an entrepreneur might start doing tanker runs to supply different areas of the city.

But people would be more likely to come with 20L containers, judging by other councils' experiences, general manager for infrastructure Chris Allen said.

"We haven't heard anything about commercial operators wanting to provide fluoride-free.".......................