BUFFALO, N.Y. — Residents of Buffalo are filing a class-action lawsuit after learning the city has not been fluoridating the water since June 22, 2015.

Attorney Robert Corp is representing the plaintiffs, who have concerns for their young children. Corp said they will be utilizing the Green Amendment, which was ratified into the New York State Constitution in Jan. 2022, promising people the right to a “healthful environment.” He said by not telling people their water was not being fluoridated, the city violated that right.

“We think that given the clarity in the science and the guidance from New York State Department of Health, the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] at the federal level and the World Health Organization, that healthful water includes fluoridation,” Corp said.

Councilmember Rasheed Wyatt also expressed his concern, saying the Buffalo Water Authority should have been more transparent about the situation.

“I have the 2021 annual report and it talks in here about fluoride, but nowhere in plain vision do you see where it says fluoride is not being included anywhere. I mean you look at this, it’s tiny, you know? I need my readers to read it,” Wyatt said while holding up the report.

The city said it will begin fluoridating the water again by the end of the year and declined to comment on the lawsuit.

Last month when Spectrum News 1 reached out the Water Board, Chairperson Oluwole A. McFoy, P.E. responded in a statement saying:

“Buffalo is committed to fluoridation of our drinking water, which is why we have invested over $1 million to study and upgrade our current system. The plan was for the project to be completed several years ago, but like many things, was slowed during the pandemic and is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year. Buffalo Water’s role as a Public Health provider is to ensure safe drinking water for all our residents. We initially placed the Fluoride Conversion project on hold out of an abundance of caution for water quality concerns related to lead and corrosion control. We partnered with the University at Buffalo to develop a state of the art Pipe Loop Laboratory, where they studied the treatment process optimizations over several years and concluded in November 2019 that: 'The results provide strong statistical evidence that the addition of FSA (fluorosilicic acid) does not result in increased leaching of lead.'"

Furthermore, a statement on page six of the Buffalo Water Authority 2021-2022 Water Quality Report states:

“Our system is one of the many drinking water systems in New York State that provides drinking water with a controlled, low level of fluoride for consumer dental health protection. According to the United States Centers for Disease Control (CDC), fluoride is very effective in preventing cavities when present in drinking water at a properly controlled level. Currently there is an interruption to fluoride addition due to ongoing capital improvements associated with upgrades to our fluoride system. Since June 22, 2015 fluoride has not been added to your drinking water, and we do not expect fluoride addition to be restored until completion of various capital projects. You may want to discuss this with your family dentist to see if some other form of fluoride supplement should be considered for your dental protection.”