Regina city council votes to add fluoride to drinking water

Regina will add fluoride to the city's drinking water as soon as upgrades to a nearby water treatment facility are completed.

City Council voted 10 to 1 in favour of the motion at a meetingon Wednesday.

Mayor Sandra Masters andCouncillors Cheryl Stadnichuk, Bob Hawkins, Andrew Stevens, Lori Bresciani, John Findura, Dan LeBlanc, Terina Shaw, Shanon Zachidniak and Jason Mancinelli voted in favour of the motion.

Only Coun. Landon Mohl voted against it.

Coun. Hawkins made a strong push for the motion to be adopted after a nearly three-hour debate on the subject.

Multiple provincial health organizations as well as experts on dental health testified in favour of the motion Wednesday.

Gerry Uswak istheregistrar of the College of Dental Surgeons of Saskatchewan.

He spoke at the council meeting on Wednesday.

Water fluoridation helps people who are without benefits or in a lower socioeconomic status the most, as not everyone can access dental care, Uswak said.

"Community water fluoridation provides them with very important prevention to help mitigate and reduce their risk of decay. So it's not just protecting everyone in the community, but also protecting those who are most vulnerable in the population," Uswak told CBC ahead of the meeting.

LISTEN| Mayor Sandra Masters spoke with Ted Deller about water fluoridation on The Morning Edition

Fluoridation also helps save money in the long term, as it only costs about a dollar a person per year, Uswak said.

Hawkins said council had heard two different stories: A story backed by overwhelming scientific consensus and testimony from experts in Saskatchewan and across Canada thatsaid fluoridation is needed,and another story presented by non-experts and concerned citizens who cited an unfounded fear of fluoride.

"What story are you going to believe?" Hawkinsasked his fellow councillors.

At least some other councillors agreed and vocallydismissedthose who spoke against the motion as not being experts in the subject matter.

Mohl attempted to put forward an amendment that would see the subject put to a referendum vote.

"This is everyone's drinking water," he said.

The amendment was swiftly defeated by a vote of 9 to 2.

Only Coun.Findurajoined Mohl in support of the referendum.

Contentious history

Fluoridation of the city's drinking water has long a been a controversial topic despite strong scientific evidence of the benefits of the practice.

The benefits includecavity reduction, which is important for theyoung to avoid traumatic dental work and the elderlyto avoid dental appliances that are costly and difficult to manage.

The motion called for the city to adopt a program similar to the one currently offeredin Moose Jaw and in line with Health Canada regulations.

The motion calls for the water fluoridation program to start once upgrades to the Buffalo Water Treatment plant are completed.

That work is currently scheduled to finish in 2025.

Motions to add fluoride to the water have been denied or voted down in a referendum four separate times in the city's history.