EPA Order to Regulate Fluoride in Water Overturned on Appeal

A federal appeals court Thursday overturned and sent back a lower court’s decision that the unreasonable risks of fluoride in drinking water required action by the EPA, marking a victory for the agency that appealed the ruling.

The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit said in an unpublished opinion the US District Court for the Northern District of California, which oversaw two bench trials in the case, “abused its discretion after the first bench trial by commandeering the case.”

“The district court’s ‘takeover’ of the evidentiary presentation, in combination with its repeated refusal to respect the decisions made ...