The city stopped adding fluoride to drinking water after a council vote to remove it in 2011, and city officials say reintroducing it would cost $30.1 million over a 20-year service life
A council committee looked at a new report on water fluoridation without much fanfare Tuesday.
The city stopped adding fluoride to drinking water after a council vote to remove it in 2011, and city officials say reintroducing it would cost $30.1 million over a 20-year service life.
Council accepted the information Tuesday without any further questions, but Mayor Naheed Nenshi said this could be an opening for council members to make a move on fluoride.
“A number of members of council who previously voted to remove (fluoride) asked to have this work done,” he said, adding that some may have had “second thoughts” on the issue, but he hasn’t talked with councillors about it in detail.
Alberta Health’s official stance on water fluoridation is supportive of the practice, calling it “safe, effective and cost effective.” In Canada, fluoride at 0.7 mg/L is considered the optimal level to support dental health. There is naturally occurring fluoride in Calgary’s water, but at slightly lower levels.
Nenshi said the cost of reintroducing fluoride is less daunting than it looks, and the spending notably wouldn’t increase property taxes.
“It sounds like a bi
*Original article online at https://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/fluorides-future-in-calgary-still-an-open-question-after-council-eyes-city-report
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