Fluoride in treated sewage and in rain and snow.

The liquid effluent of a sewage treatment plan contained 1.21 ppm ionic and total fluoride, which was higher than 1.0 ppm fluoride in the fluoridated public water supply. The discharge of the effluent into a river did not greatly raise the fluoride content of the river water because of dilution and other factors. The semisolid waste of sewage treatment also contained fluoride, but very little was volatilized on burning. Rain and snow were found to contain detectable quantities of fluoride, and the fluoride content of snow increased markedly during exposure to an urban environment.