Dental Amalgam

Resolved, that the following principles guide the American Dental Association's support for the national pretreatment standard for dental office wastewater:

1. Any regulation should require covered dental offices to comply with best management practices patterned on the ADA's best management practices (BMPs), including the installation of International Organization for Standardization (ISO) compliant amalgam separators or separators equally effective;
2. Any regulation should defer to existing state or local law or regulation requiring separators so that the regulation would not require replacement of existing separators compliant with existing applicable law;
3. Any regulation should exempt dental practices that place or remove no or only de minimis amounts of amalgams;
4. Any regulation should include an effective date or phase-in period of sufficient length to permit affected dentists a reasonable opportunity to comply;
5. Any regulation should provide for a reasonable opportunity for covered dentists to repair or replace defective separators without being deemed in violation of the regulation;
6. Any regulation should minimize the administrative burden on covered dental offices by (e.g.) primarily relying upon self certification (subject to verification or random inspection) and not requiring dental-office-specific permits;
7. Any regulation should not include a local numerical limit set by the local publicly owned treatment works (POTW);
8. Any regulation should not require wastewater monitoring at the dental office, although monitoring of the separators to assure proper operation may be required;
9. Any regulation should provide that compliance with it shall satisfy the requirements of the Clean Water Act unless a more stringent local requirement is needed.

American Dental Association
September 2019

Resolved, that the ADA recommends that dentists eliminate the use of bulk dental mercury and bulk amalgam alloy and that they use only precapsulated amalgam alloy in their dental practices.

American Dental Association
October 2017 (1994:676; 2017:80)

Resolved, that based on current documented scientific research, the conclusions of conferences and symposiums on the biocompatibility of metallic restorative material, and upon joint reports of the Council on Dental Materials, Instruments and Equipment and the Council on Dental Therapeutics of the Association, the continued use of dental amalgam as a restorative material does not pose a health hazard to the nonallergic patient, and be it further

Resolved, that to advocate to a patient or the public the removal of clinically serviceable dental amalgam restorations solely to substitute a material that does not contain mercury is unwarranted and violates the ADA Principles of Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct, and be it further

Resolved, that in those instances where state dental boards initiate proceedings on this question that the ADA cooperate in such proceedings by making available scientific personnel as expert witnesses.

American Dental Association
October 2017 (1994:676; 2017:80)

Resolved, that although the safety and efficacy of dental restorative materials has been extensively researched, the Association, consistent with its Research Agenda, will continue to actively promote such research to ensure that the profession and the public have the most current, scientifically valid information on which to make choices about dental treatment requiring restorative materials, and be it further

Resolved, that the Association use its existing communications vehicles to educate opinion leaders and policy makers about the scientific methods used to assess the safety and efficacy of dental restorative materials, and be it further

Resolved, that the Association continue to promptly inform the public and the profession of any new scientific information that contributes significantly to the current understanding of dental restorative materials.

American Dental Association
October 2017 (2003:387; 2017:80)

Resolved, that the ADA defines "dental best management practices" to mean a series of amalgam waste handling and disposal practices that include but are not limited to initiating bulk mercury collection programs, using chair side traps, amalgam separators complaint with ISO 11143 and vacuum collection, inspecting and cleaning traps, and recycling or using a commercial waste disposal service to dispose of the amalgam collected, and be it further

Resolved, that the ADA take, and constituent and component dental societies be urged to take, immediate steps to increase universal awareness and use of best management practices by dentists to reduce amalgam waste, and be it further

Resolved, that the ADA acknowledges the need for flexibility for each constituent and component society to make appropriate policy choices on behalf of their members based on local conditions.

American Dental Association
September 2007 (2002:422; 2007:441)

Resolved, that the Association strongly encourages dentists to adhere to best management practices and supports other voluntary efforts by dentists to reduce amalgam discharges in dental office wastewater, and be it further

Resolved, that the Association encourages constituent and component societies to enter into collaborative arrangements with regional, state or local wastewater authorities to address their concerns about amalgam in dental office wastewater, and be it further

Resolved, that the appropriate agencies of the Association continue to disseminate information to the constituent and component societies to help them address concerns of regional, state or local wastewater authorities about amalgam in dental office wastewater, and be it further

Resolved, that the appropriate agencies of the Association continue to investigate products and services that will help dentists effectively reduce amalgam in dental office wastewater and keep the profession advised, and be it further

Resolved, that the Association include in its advocacy messages the importance of basing environmental regulations or guidance affecting dental offices on sound science, and be it further

Resolved, that the Association continue to identify and urge the Environmental Protection Agency to fund studies that accurately and appropriately identify whether amalgam wastewater discharge affects the environment.

American Dental Association
October 2003 (2003:387)