As part of the municipal election October 27th, residents in Owen Sound will vote on whether they want to continue to have their drinking water treated with fluoride.

The Scenic City has been adding fluoride for over half a century, but there has been vocal opposition in recent months so the issue is going to the plebiscite.

Bayshore Broadcasting News asked all four candidates for mayor what they think about the issue and whether they would urge residents to vote how they plan to vote.

Incumbent Deb Haswell favours the plebiscite to settle the issue, and she says the candidates would best serve the citizens by remaining neutral in the debate.

She says each voter should make up his or her own mind and not be influenced by the candidates.

Former Mayor Ruth Lovell Stanners doesn’t like taking the issue to the voters.

Lovell Stanners says she is still doing her own research, but overall says it is not appropriate to ask citizens of Owen Sound or any community to vote on whether to have fluoride in the water.

Lovell Stanners says the province should have the courage to come up with whatever they feel is appropriate and not rely on residents making the decision based on what they learn from the internet.

Councillor and candidate for Mayor, Ian Boddy says he is leaning towards taking fluoride out of the water.

He says everyone should do their own research and says once he makes up his own mind, he will not be recommending voters base their decision on what he decides.

Mike Zimon is the only candidate for mayor to have definitely made up his mind.

He will vote to take fluoride out, after hearing from a dentist that it does not work thru ingestion.

Zimon says fluoride works when applied to the teeth, but the amount rushing across your teeth in the water would offer very, very little benefit.

So the question residents will vote on will be — “Are you in favour of the discontinuation of fluoride in the municipal drinking water?”

Print PDF