Summary Minutes - Water Resources - 5/21/2001
CITY OF BOULDER, COLORADO
BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS MEETING SUMMARY FORM
NAME OF BOARD/COMMISSION: Water Resources Advisory Board
DATE OF MEETING: May 21, 2001
NAME/TELEPHONE OF PERSON PREPARING SUMMARY: Robin Madel, 303-441-4073
NAMES OF MEMBERS, COUNCIL, STAFF AND INVITED GUESTS PRESENT:
BOARD MEMBERS - Robert Fiehweg, Jeannette Hillery, Cal Youngberg, Vicki Naber, Gil Barth
STAFF - Ned Williams, Chris Rudkin, Randy Crittendon, Ridge Dorsey, Brad Segal and Robin Madel, secretary
WHAT TYPE OF MEETING (BOLD ONE) [REGULAR] [SPECIAL] [QUASI-JUDICIAL]
Agenda Item 1 - Call to Order
The meeting was called to order at 7:07 .m.
Agenda Item 2 - Approval of April 16, 2001 Meeting Minutes
Jeannette Hillery motioned to approve the minutes.
Vicki Naber seconded.
The motion passed unanimously, 4-0. Cal Youngberg was not there et.
Agenda Item 3 - General Citizen Participation
There was none.
Agenda Item 4 - Staff update and discussion on drinking water fluoridation (Staff - Chris Rudkin and
Randy Crittendon).
Ned Williams introduced the topic and why it is being presented at the meeting. He said there have been a
number of newspaper articles about fluoridation in drinking water that has led to the Environmental Advisory
Board (EAB) to discuss it at their next meeting on June 14, 2001. The EAB will be taking a vote of support or
dissent about the issue.
Chris Rudkin wanted to provide the WRAB with up-to-date information about fluoridation of drinking water. He
discussed several studies that had been performed to evaluate the effects of fluoridation. He also discussed the
recent decision by the Ft. Collins Water Board to recommend discontinuing fluoridation of drinking water. He
reviewed the history of fluoridation in Boulder and referenced the recent citizen survey that showed only 25% of
respondents are slightly or strongly opposed to fluoridation.
WRAB Questions
WRAB questions covered the following:
■ The decision in Ft. Collins
■ Appropriate mechanisms for fluoridation (if methods other than drinking water are used)
■ Questions/concerns about fluoridation from the Web site
■ The survey results
■ The benefits of fluoridation
■ The positions of the state and county health departments
■ The situation in Colorado Springs
■ The existence of a mechanism to monitor for negative effects
■ Negative effects or potential negative effects
■ The monitoring and distribution system in place in Boulder
■ The source and form of the fluoride used in Boulder
Citizen Participation and WRAB Comment
Water Resources Advisory Board
Summary Minutes
May 21, 2001
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Henry Eaton, 2180 Sunshine Canyon Dr., Boulder, is a retired dentist that led the campaign to get Boulder to
fluoridate its water in 1969. He said in his opinion there has never been as effective or safe a public
health issue as this. He said the original studies came from Colorado Springs, which has three times the
drinking water limit of naturally occurring fluoride in their water. He said that fluorosis (white spots on
teeth) was the only problem reported. In his dental practice he used to see a lot of cavities and tooth
decay, especially in children but he said it almost disappeared after fluoridation began. He is amazed by
the comment made by the board in Ft. Collins that they will save money by not administering fluoride
now that tooth decay is no longer a problem. He feels this is a health matter and not an EAB matter and
he said he spoke with the city attorney who agreed with him. He explained the process by which fluoride
helps prevent tooth decay. He spoke about the previous elections that attempted to end fluoridation and
about how nasty those campaigns got.
WRAB Comments
Jeannette Hillery asked if any longevity studies had been done in Colorado Springs. Henry said he had been out
of dentistry for 20 years but he didn't think any links had been found between diseases and fluoridation. He also
pointed out that with 175 million people receiving fluoridated water, if there were any links they would show up
very clearly.
The WRAB agreed that the issue belongs with the county and state health boards. The EAB meeting will be June
14, 2001 at 6:00 p.m. at 1720 13t11 St. Bob Fiehweg and Cal Youngberg agreed to attend the meeting. If the EAB
votes against fluoridation, the City Council could decide to hold an election on it, in which case they would
probably have the WRAB evaluate it and make a formal recommendation.
Agenda Item 5 - Staff overview and discussion on the Industrial Pretreatment Program (Staff - Ridge
Dorsey).
Ridge Dorsey gave a presentation about the program. He spoke from slides that were included in the packets. He
said the same presentation had been given to a group of consultants and the Colorado Department of Public
Health and the Environment.
Slides covered the following topics:
The Definition of Industrial Pretreatment
The Goals of the Program
Implementation of the Program
Pretreatment Authority
Pretreatment Standards
General Prohibitions of Pretreatment
Specific Prohibitions of Pretreatment
Local Limits
Federal Limits
The "nuts and bolts" of Local Limits
Enforcement
Types of Noncompliance
Factors Determining Response to Noncompliance
Tools to Deter Violators
Pro-activity in Boulder
Citizen Participation and WRAB Comment
There was none.
WRAB uestions
Water Resources Advisory Board
Summary Minutes
May 21, 2001
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WRAB questions covered the following:
■ How companies can get info about the IP Program
■ The PACE Program
■ The last compliance audit done by the city
Agenda Item 6 -
A. Matters from the Board
■ Jeannette Hillery said that she had gone to all of the South Boulder Creek reach meetings and she's looking
forward to the update that will be given next month. She said the meetings have been productive and Alan
Taylor is doing an outstanding job.
B. Matters from the Staff
■ Ned Williams reported that the Wonderland Creek project is underway and the major excavation work is
done for the channel.
■ Ned Williams reported that there would be three Barker Reservoir meetings during the summer. The
secretary will e-mail the dates of the meetings to the WRAB members.
Agenda Item 7 - Discussion of Future Meeting Dates and Agenda
There are two meetings in June:
1. The regular meeting on June 18, 2001, which will cover the South Boulder Creek Floodplan, The 2002
budget, CIP and rate increases and the Inter-Governmental Agreement with Lafayette.
2. A joint meeting with the TAB to discuss the Greenways Program CIP on June 25, 2001 at 7 or 7:30 p.m. at a
location to be determined.
Agenda Item 8 -Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 8:53 p.m.
Date, Time, and Location of Next Meeting:
June 18, 2001, 7:00 p.m., regular meeting, at the City Yards in the Cafeteria.
June 25, 2001, Greenwa s Program CIP, at a time and location to be determined.
Water Resources Advisory Board
Summary Minutes
May 21, 2001
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