OCEAN SPRINGS — Whether the city adds fluoride to the water supply could depend on opinions offered by residents.

Aldermen meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall to discuss the project.

In January, Dr. Nicholas Mosca, state dental director of the Mississippi State Department of Health, presented information in favor of water fluoridation.

“We want to give the citizens of Ocean Springs the opportunity to voice their opinions on whether or not the city should fluoridate its water supply,” said Mayor Connie Moran.

The Department of Health said community water fluoridation is efficient, cost-effective and considered the single most effective means of preventing tooth decay over a person’s lifetime.

If the Board of Aldermen agrees to fluoridate the city’s water, the Department of Health would pay for the start-up costs plus an additional two years of funding at an estimated $20,000 annually.

Mosca said about 1.5 million Mississippians, or 53 percent of the population, receive fluoridated water in their homes.

Moran said the city’s expense after two years would amount to about a dollar per year per citizen. Adding fluoride causes no change to taste or color of the water, Moran said.

Roger Simnicht with Dental Health Center said he thinks adding the fluoride is a good idea.

“I’m all for it. It’s a proven decay fighter,” he said. “It’s just another weapon we use.”

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