A Dane County Circuit Court judge’s decision will guide any movement by the Village of DeForest to reintroduce fluoride into the public water system.
On April 28, attorneys for the village made a motion to dismiss a request for an injunction filed by DeForest resident Bernard Coxhead. After Coxhead’s response, the court adjourned with Judge Rhonda Landford expected to issue a written decision, according to online court records.
The DeForest Village Board began to discuss the possibility of reintroducing fluoride to the water earlier this year. Then in early February, Coxhead filed for a restraining order to halt the action until a federal reassessment of fluorides’s health risks could be completed.
In a letter to the court, Coxhead argued that the “plaintiff will suffer irreparable harm absent immediate relief” with fluoride in the public water.
The motion also argued that the village’s water system had been safe without fluoride added.
Last year, the DeForest village board voted to remove fluoride from the public water system. The controversial vote drew sharp criticism, and was partially the catalyst for a recall movement that successfully replaced one village trustee.
In January, the village board revisited the decision and voted to explore the necessary steps to reintroduce fluoride. Previously, fluoride was added only to the northern part of the water system, but with the reintroduction, the village would be required to include it in the entire system.
Improvements to the wells, along with new storage facilities would then be needed, and staff had estimated the costs at between $205,000 and $245,000 but were seeking more concrete estimates.
Some trustees at the January meeting urged staff to explore a system that could allow residents to opt out of fluoridated water.
In March, the DeForest village board took up the discussion of fluoride reintroduction once again but no action was taken after a 3-3 vote. At the time, the board was without a village president following Jane Cahill Wolfgram’s resignation due to health reasons, leaving just the six trustees.
Original article online at: https://www.hngnews.com/the_star/local_news/deforest-fluoride-challenge-awaits-judges-decision/article_f91927af-e665-4a4e-94e1-cd8b2462a88c.html