Dentists are responsible for less than 1 percent of the total mercury released into the environment from manmade causes; but across the United States, dentists are taking the lead in cutting the amount of mercury they potentially could release into the waste stream, according to an article in the June issue of AGD Impact, the monthly newsmagazine of the Academy of General Dentistry.
Through amalgam recycling, proper maintenance of chair-side traps, and, in some cases, the use of amalgam separators, dentists say they are proving that voluntary measures are more effective than legislative or regulatory approaches.
Following a year of unprecedented legislative, legal and regulatory activity aimed at amalgam going into the mouth, anti-amalgam advocates currently are focusing on amalgam particles going into the sewers.
"Anti-amalgam extremists are attempting to link questions about the safety of amalgam as a restorative material with the issue of mercury entering lakes, rivers, streams and coastal waters," says Myron Bromberg, DDS, chair, AGD Council on Legislative and Governmental Affairs (LGA). "Dentists are a microscopic contributor to mercury in the environment, but dentistry is being painted with the same brush as industry."
"Since amalgamation results in an extremely stable form of mercury, it appears that dentistry is a minimal contributor of methylmercury [the form of mercury that settles into sediment and is absorbed by fish]," adds LGA member Mark S. Ritz, DDS, MAGD. "Even so, dentists are good citizens who care about protecting the environment, and I believe that the profession will eagerly embrace science-based source reduction and recycling programs."
Consumer concern over amalgam has increased with awareness of the health risks posed by mercury exposure. Most of the mercury that winds up in human beings gets there through the food chain. It is released into the air, mostly from the smokestacks of power plants and waste incinerators. From there it winds up in lakes and rivers and in the fish that inhabit them. "[Amalgam in wastewater] is a minimal contributor to potential methylmercury in the waterways," says James Westman, DDS, FAGD, chair, Minnesota Dental Association Committee on Environment, Wellness and Safety. "But this isn't about arguing over numbers; it's about an opportunity for dentist to make a meaningful commitment to environmental protection in their local areas."
According to a 1997 study by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), industrial smokestack emissions from power plants and waste incineration account for more than 78 percent of the mercury released into the environment through manmade causes. "Smokestacks are a much greater problem, yet treatment plants are under pressure to meet much more strident regulations than industry," Dr. Westman says.
And that's where dentists can help. Sewage treatment plants are under mandate to remove the mercury coming out of their pipes on the clean end, and for the past decade they've been pushing the sources of the mercury to clean up the water coming in on the dirty end. "Source reduction has been the focus of pollution control efforts for the last decade; and as the major mercury contributors have cleaned up their acts, dentistry's tiny numbers have come to seem larger," Dr. Westman says.
Many states are considering mercury-related legislation or regulation, but dentists say the regulation is unnecessary. By following guidelines such as those laid out the American Dental Association's "Best Management Practices for Amalgam Waste," Dr. Ritz says dentists can address the profession's mercury waste management issues in a "practical and meaningful manner."
For additional information on amalgam and other issues affecting the field of dentistry, please visit the Academy of General Dentistry's Web site, www.agd.org. To locate a dentist in your area or request a free oral and overall health care brochure, consumers across the U.S. and Canada can call toll-free 1-877-2X-A-YEAR (1-877-292-9327).
The Academy of General Dentistry is a non-profit organization of more than 37,000 general dentists dedicated to staying up-to-date in the profession through continuing education. A general dentist is the primary care provider for patients of all ages and is responsible for the diagnosis, treatment, management and overall coordination of services related to patient's oral health needs.
