of residents
tracked towns with fluoride added
with none added (8 naturally fluoridated)
with a recent, upcoming or ongoing change
Law: Water Fluoridation Act 2008 (amended 2012)
Who decides: Each council decides, since the 2012 handover. 16 of 77 still add it.
First fluoridated: Mandated 2008
Since 2012, council after council has voted to stop. Gympie, Cooktown, Banana and Central Highlands are the latest. Both major parties have left it to local government.
The dental lobby says a new study proves fluoridation works and wants the state to take back control. We read what the study actually measured.
Two US states have banned fluoridation and the US health secretary calls it a neurotoxin. Australian health authorities have not moved. Should they?
The chemicals used, where they come from, how much goes in, and which home filters actually remove it.
Who adds it, how much, what the evidence says, what critics argue, and where in Australia it isn't added at all.
In 2009, a shut-down plant kept dosing fluoride, an alarm was dismissed as false, and safety switches had been disabled. What went wrong, and could it happen again?
While Queensland councils opt out and US states ban it, New Zealand took the decision away from councils. Its Court of Appeal backed that in June 2026.
While Queensland councils opt out, Western Australia has been quietly expanding. Here's every new fluoridated supply we've found.
Brisbane's main treatment plant measured as low as 0.07 mg/L in September. Broken Hill averaged 0.16. Here's what utility data shows about supplies running well below target.