South Dakota

WATER FLUORIDATION STATUS:

• PERCENT OF PEOPLE SERVED BY PUBLIC WATER SYSTEMS THAT ARE FLUORIDATED:
  2018:  93.7% – ranked #8 among the states (100% fluoridated is ranked #1)
  2016:  93.6%
  2014:  93.6%
  2012:  93.6%
  2006:  95.0%
  2000:  88.4%
  1992:  100%
• To see if your town is fluoridated, click here.
• To learn when your town was fluoridated, and which fluoridation chemical it uses, click here.

LATEST NEWS:

• Dec 18, 2015: Department of Environment and Natural Resources Reduces the Amount of Fluori de Required in Drinking Water. Press release.
• To see an updated list of South Dakota’s professionals calling for an end to fluoridation, click here.

For a quick overview, Michael Dolan, in his November 2021 Fluoridation Review, listed these cities and towns in South Dakota:

(Incomplete) This information was obtained from the South Dakota Department of Environment & Natural Resources, Aug. 12, 2020. The list does not indicate the source of the fluoride in the water (natural or added). For this list, each municipality with less than 0.7 mg/L fluoride is listed as non-fluoridated while those having 0.7 mg/L or more are listed as fluoridated. In cases where the fluoride level is greater than 1.0 mg/L the concentration is indicated in parentheses. Other water systems that are not indicated as being from a city or town are not included at this time.

Fluoridated cities and towns: Aberdeen, Alcester (1.45), Aurora, Avon (1.3), Baltic, Beresford, Bison, Bonesteel, Box Elder, Bradley, Buffalo Gap, Burke, Canova, Canton (1.12), Castlewood, Centerville, Chancellor (1.45), Clark, Colman, Colome, Colton, Crooks, Custer, Dallas, DeSmet, Deadwood, Dell Rapids, Edgemont, Egan, Elk Point (2.13), Flandreau, Freeman (1.3), Fruitdale (1.74), Garretson, Gayville, Gregory, Harrisburg, Hartford, Henry, Hill City, Humboldt, Irene (1.3), Jefferson, Keystone, Lead, Lemmon, Lennox, Lesterville (1.3), Madison, Menno (1.3), Milbank, Mission Hill (1.3), Mitchell (1.3), Morristown (1.74), New Underwood (1.51), Newerll (1.25), Nisland, North Sioux City (1.13), Nunda (1.10), Parker, Parkston (1.30), Piedmont (1.25), Rapid City, Raymond, Rosholt (1.30), Scotland (1.30), Sioux Falls, Sisseton (1.42), Spearfish, Tabor (1.30), Tea, Trent, Tripp (1.46), Tyndall (1.30), Utica (1.3), Vermillion (1.18), Volga (1.27), Wakonda, Wall (2.36), Wallace, Wentworth, Wessington Springs, Whitewood (1.10), Winner (1.21), Woonsocket, Worthington (1.45), Yankton.

Non-fluoridated cities and towns: Alpena, Armour, Belle Fourche, Big Stone City, Blunt, Bowdle, Brentford, Bristol, Britton, Bryant, Buffalo, Canistota, Chamberlain, Claremont, Clear Lake, Conde, Corona, Corsica, Cresbard, Delmont, Doland, Dupree, Eagle Butte, Eden, Elkton, Estelline, Eureka, Faith, Faulkton, Florence, Fort Pierre, Frederick, Gray, Geddes, Gettysburg, Grenville, Groton, Hayti, Hecla, Hermosa, Herreid, Highmore, Hitchcock, Hosmer, Hot Springs, Hoven, Howard, Hurley, Ipswich, Iroquois, Isabel, Java, Kadoka, Kennebec, Kimball, Lake Andes, Lake City, Lake Norden, Lake Preston, Langford, Leola, Marion, Martin, Marvin, McIntosh, Mellette, Midland, Miller, Mobridge, Montrose, Murdo, New Effington, Northville, Oacoma, Oelrichs, Oldham, Onida, Peever, Philip, Pickstown, Pierpont, Pierre, Plankinton, Platte, Pollock, Presho, Pukwana, Ramona, Redfield, Roscoe, Roslyn, Salem, Selby, Seneca, South Shore, Springfield, Stickney, Stratford, Summit, Timber Lake, Tolstoy, Tulare, Valley Springs, Veblen, Viborg, Wagner, Warner, Wasta, Waubay, Webster, Wessington, White, White Lake, White River, Wilmot, Wolsey

South Dakota’s MANDATORY FLUORIDATION LAW:

• South Dakota Codified Laws § 34-24A-1 mandate fluoridation for all communities of 500 or more, except where natural?fluoride content conforms to State Department of Health regulations.  Regulations specify adding fluoride when the natural content is less than 0.9 mg/L and require the system to maintain the fluoride concentration within a range of 0.9 mg/L to 1.7 mg/L with an average level of 1.2 mg/L. Public vote by special election was allowed, if petition filed within 120 days of passage of the law, which has since passed.  To learn more about this law, click here.
  

DATA ON ORAL HEALTH:

• 2014. The Oral Health of South Dakota’s Third Grade Children Compared to the General U.S. Third Grade Population. South Dakota Department of Health Data Brief June. No mention of dental fluorosis.
• 2015. Oral Health Plan for South Dakota, 2015-2020. South Dakota Oral Health Coalition. Spring. No mention of dental fluorosis.

FAN’S STATE COORDINATOR IN South Dakota:

If you live in SD and want to get the fluoride out of your water contact Stuart Cooper, FAN’s campaign coordinator.

SOUTH DAKOTA WATER SYSTEMS WITH HIGH FLUORIDE LEVELS:

FLUORIDE POLLUTION SOURCES IN SOUTH DAKOTA:

In 2008, South Dakota ranked #42 out of 48 states for Hydrogen Fluoride releases (86,000  pounds). The following data comes from EPA’s Toxic Release Inventory (TRI). “Total releases” includes both water and air pollution. It’s important to note, however, that not all industries or sources that release fluoride into the environment are included in the TRI.