 |
 |
FSA shortages affecting utilitiesSource: MainStream staff
The primarily regional nature of the shortage at that time has become more general throughout the water industry. The fluorosilicic acid (FSA) market continues to experience disruption resulting from production limitations, although dry chemicals are available. Cleveland Water, which uses FSA, has seen the price of the chemical rise 105 percent over the last two years. Rolfe Porter, assistant commissioner of plant operations, noted the utility has had two-year contracts with its FSA supplier in the past, but can only negotiate for one year now. No supplier would bid on a contract that included a performance bond, added Maggie Rogers, Cleveland’s water quality manager. They noted that they are ordering the product farther and farther out because the utility has had some close calls. At one point, Cleveland Water was only one day away from running out of FSA, but its supplier has managed a delivery in time for the utility to maintain fluoridation. As a courtesy, Cleveland Water has kept the state drinking water regulators informed when its fluoride supply has been extremely low. Eliminating fluoridation is not an option because the state of Ohio requires public water suppliers to fluoridate. Cleveland is not the only water utility to face fluoride shortages. News media have reported temporary and even complete cessation of fluoridation from Tennessee to New England, and Canada. The FSA shortage is a result of several factors, including industry consolidation and the closure of several production facilities, the increase in new communities fluoridating (particularly in California), and increased demand for fluoride products for non-water treatment applications. The largest FSA producer is experiencing production problems, and other producers are not able to pick up the slack in the short term. Fluorosilicic acid is mainly a co-product of the phosphate fertilizer industry, and its availability is a function of the production of phosphate fertilizers. Phosphate fertilizer manufacturers produce FSA from the processing of apatite ores containing fluoride. It is distributed through various suppliers to the water industry and non-water treatment end users. The cost of FSA has increased. New suppliers have entered the market, but it will take time for additional capacity to be realized. Although some improvement is expected by mid-2008, alleviation of all the current production limitations may take another one to three years. Recommendations from fluoride committee, AWWA, CDCThe Fluoride Standards Committee recommends communities consider the use of sodium fluorosilicate (SFS) if they have the capability to feed the dry chemical, which is not currently experiencing shortages. In addition, communities ready to replace existing fluoridation equipment or initiating fluoridation should also consider the use of SFS.
The AWWA committee further recommends that fluoridating utilities verify their storage and ensure that the storage is full by June each year, after which the most pronounced shortages of FSA typically occur. In addition, it may be necessary to increase FSA order point lead times during the warmer months. If a water system anticipates that it will exhaust its supply of fluoride, utilty officials should notify the state fluoridation program of the termination date and date of resumption. Most important, utilities need to notify their customers of the situation. This will help customers understand what the utility is doing to ensure safe and healthy water for the community and help maintain good customer relations. For a community that has been consistently fluoridating, a few days or even weeks should not result in an adverse oral health influence in a community as tooth decay develops slowly over time, according to the CDC. The CDC has a Fact Sheet on Fluoride Shortages. Members of the AWWA Standards Committee on Fluorides are D.W. Heumann, chair, D.M. Apanian, F.Barker, K. Duchon, M.L. Magnant, C. Marcos, J.U. Tamburini, M.L. Wentink, N.G. Pizzi, M.E. Looney, P.B. Maasen, G. Navar, M.E. Casto, M.B. Gilton, S. Rezania, S.A. Smith, and J.S. Trotter.
|
