CASINO residents will be drinking fluoridated water by the end of the year.

Richmond Valley Council general manager Brian Wilkinson confirmed the fluoridation system for Casino’s water supply will be operational by the December 31 deadline set by the Health Department.

The water supply is being fluoridated as part of an initiative aimed at improving the community’s dental health.

The department, which is funding the new system, required it to be operational by the end of this year and Mr Wilkinson said the council was on track to do that.

As part of the fluoridation project, the council is conducting a public education campaign about fluoride and has sent out an information sheet to residents.

It says the fluoride to be used in the Casino water supply has no taste or smell and will not alter the taste of the tap water.

Further, it says a review undertaken by the University of York in England of 214 studies into water fluoridation found that a fluoridated water supply helped protect against tooth decay without causing any unwanted health effects.

The Health Department has also directed Rous Water, which supplies water to Evans Head, Coraki, Broadwater and Woodburn, to fluoridate that part of its supply. This is expected to come online next year.

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