Adding fluoride to drinking water is becoming a thing of the past as more communities opt out of the once standard procedure. The St. Paul Water Treatment Plant has approached Town Council asking to that the process of adding fluoride be eliminated.

Adding artificial fluoride to drinking water cost The Town $6000-7000 annually, and can be toxic to deal with. On top of that, there is already naturally occurring fluoride in the water. The Town of St. Paul uses water from the North Saskatchewan River, which then travels through Lac St. Cyr.

The process of fluoridation began to help prevent tooth decay, the fluoride is absorbed into teeth and bones to help protect tooth enamel. However, some studies, including ones done by the World Health Organization show that excessive fluoride can be toxic to humans.

Dentists now recommend that the fluoride children receive through toothpaste is enough, and sometimes too much. The general rule for children is a pea size amount of toothpaste. It is no longer the norm for dentists to recommend added fluoride to well-water.

30 Canadian cities have banned fluoride from their drinking water, including in Alberta; Calgary, Cochrane, Drayton Valley, Falher, Medicane Hat, Okotoks, Slave Lake and Taber. There seems to be a split among proponents and opponents of the ban in each municipality.

With the evidence split, Town Council decided to let the public weigh in. The poll is active via social media and the town website, with 85.7% of those who responded saying St. Paul should not add fluoride to the water. The survey will be open until August 7th at 4:00pm.