THE QUEENSLAND Government has admitted that the information it released earlier regarding the fluoride overdose incident at the North Pine Water Treatment plant was incorrect.
The government originally said that up to 30mg per litre of fluoride had been introduced into Brisbane’s water supplies. This amount is over 20 times the recommended maximum level of 1.5mg per litre.
The state government has since revised this figure down to 19.4mg per litre.
Similarly, the government had warned that around four thousand households in the Brisbane suburbs of Brendale and Warner had water supplies with too much fluoride. In fact, these suburbs were not affected at all.
Queensland Premier Anna Bligh has ordered an independent investigation into the incident, to be lead by International Water Centre chief Mark Pascoe.
Pascoe has provided an interim report, in which he says the affected water may have actually been consumed by up to 211 school children at a YMCA camp and four houses on the North Pine Water Treatment Plant site between 8am and 9am on 30 April. Four hundred residents in the adjacent suburb of Joyner may have also been affected.
Authorities have contacted the three schools whose students were at the camp and no health concerns have so far emerged.
According to Pascoe, a slug of water containing the increased levels of fluoride had been used to backwash the North Pine Water Treatment Plant. The overdosed water was not discharged through the trunk line affecting Brendale and Warner residents as initially thought.
The overdose appears to have occurred when the North Pine Water Treatment Plant had been shut down for maintenance. Fluoride continued to be added to the system while the plant was offline, resulting in a higher concentration of fluoride in the water supply when operation resumed.
Premier Bligh has apologised to any residents who were unduly concerned following the incorrect advice and assured the community the potential health effects from the overdose were very small.
The final report on the incident is due to be completed on June 26.
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