Fluoride Free Hamilton supporters were pleased to see the launching of a brand new, custom-made non-fluoridated water outlet at Claudelands today, provided by Hamilton City Council. It has been keenly anticipated and will finally enable many local people to access a free alternative water supply to meet their family’s needs. Pat McNair, spokesperson for FFH said, “We are very pleased that Hamilton City Council has finally co-operated with us on this.”

”Of course, what Hamilton’s residents really need is non-fluoridated water coming out of their own taps at home, but in the meantime, the two public non-fluoridated outlets that are now available (at both Claudelands and the Taitua Arboretum), are better than nothing. In the circumstances, we feel it is the very least the Council could do for us.”

Fluoride Free Hamilton considers that each outlet has both advantages and disadvantages, which provides the public with choices to suit their individual needs.

The Claudelands outlet, which is at a handy, central location, uses a Reverse Osmosis filter to treat the public water supply. This takes everything out, including fluoride, chlorine, minerals and trace elements. Chlorine is then added back in to kill any disease-causing bacteria. Pat adds, “We have been advised that a good mineral supplement (e.g. Himalayan or Celtic Sea Salt etc) should replace the minerals lost in the filtration process.”

This outlet has two taps at different heights as well as a drinking fountain. The lower tap has a hose connection suitable for connecting ordinary flexible garden hoses for easy filling of large containers that are too heavy to lift.

The Taitua Arboretum outlet, which is 5 kms out of town, past the Dinsdale shopping centre (take SH23 – the road to Raglan – and turn left into Howden Rd), uses natural bore water and has no chlorine added – using a UV light filter instead, to disinfect the water. There is a single tap supplied at this site.

Fluoride Free Hamilton encourages all Hamilton residents to make good use of the new tap facility at Claudelands, which is conveniently placed near the new venue for Hamilton’s Sunday Farmer’s Market. To find the tap, use Gate 2 off Heaphy Terrace, which leads to the historic Grandstand building. There is plenty of parking and the tap is in the carpark just by the children’s playground and the public toilets.

If the popularity of the existing Taitua water outlet is anything to go by, then Fluoride Free Hamilton predicts there will be a steady stream of enthusiastic “pure water” users queuing up at Claudelands on a daily basis from today onwards.