fluoridating

By: Chelsey St-Pierre
The Suburban

Montreal announced its plans to stop fluoridating West Island water in 2025. Montreal tap water has never been fluoridated. Should the agglomeration council pass the proposal, over 140,000 people in Pointe-Claire, Beaconsfield, Kirkland, Baie-D’Urfé, Dollard-des-Ormeaux and Dorval will be affected by its decision.

The water plants in Pointe-Claire and Dorval, which treat the majority of water in the West Island, are the only plants that fluoridate their drinking water in the Greater Montreal Area (GMA).

The City claims that the safety of city employees handling what was referred to as a “corrosive chemicals”, raises questions about fluoride’s health effects. It also referred to the high maintenance cost of fluoridation as a factor in the decision. According to statements made by Lachine Mayor Maja Vodanovic, the City does not want water used for “medications or pharmaceuticals”, a popular scientific theory in Denmark and surrounding countries, widely debunked by North American health authorities. According to Health Canada, Quebec’s Health Authority and the City of Montreal websites, fluoride is not only considered safe, but is also recommended. The sanitation chemical is also subsidized by the Quebec government.

The agglomeration also stated that the cost of keeping the fluoridation program would be $19 million in order to make the necessary upgrades to the plants, plus $330,000 per year in maintenance. The agglomeration council, which must authorize expenditures, will vote on the issue on December 24. West Island municipalities will only be able to present their views at the December 24 meeting and collectively only have one vote.

Heidi Ektvedt, Mayor of Baie-D’Urfé, says the population living in the affected municipalities should have been consulted beforehand. ”The City of Montreal decided to take over the water plants. It is then their responsibility to consult with our population before making decisions that concern them,” Ektvedt told The Suburban. “Politicians should not be making announcements, pronouncing themselves as health experts. Canadian studies do not acknowledge this ‘science’. It is not a question of whether or not I am not for or against it and it is not my decision, nor Montreal’s decision, to make. It is the decision of those who live here and consume the water.” n