ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. — St. Lucie County commissioners on Tuesday voted unanimously to repeal a 1989 ordinance requiring local municipalities to add fluoride to their water.
Natalie Mills told WPTV she is happy the fluoride is staying out.
Port St. Lucie residents tell WPTV what they think of fluoride
“I don’t want to drink it,” said Mills.
But Faith Delaney still sees the benefits of fluoride.
“It’s been introduced in our water and communities throughout the country for many years and has definitely lowered the number of cavities people get,” said Delaney.
Both Mills and Delaney are from Port St. Lucie, a city that paused adding fluoride to the water in December.
The decision came after the Florida Surgeon General recommended against the use of fluoride because of possible neurological risks.
While the pause technically goes against the 1989 ordinance, Erick Gill with St. Lucie County tells WPTV’s Tyler Hatfield the county attorney wasn’t going to enforce it.
“The ordinance, even though it was on the books, was never really being enforced and it didn't really make any sense to have something on the books that we're not enforcing,” said Gill.
County Commissioner Cathy Townsend said the commission wants to give municipalities more choice.
“The city should be able to make their own decision on their utilities,” said Townsend. “We shouldn’t have a say in that, they know what they want.”
Previous coverage: Port St. Lucie temporarily halts fluoride in city water
Right now, St. Lucie County does not have their own water system but gets their water through Fort Pierce Utilities Authority.
While she agrees with giving people a choice, Commissioner Townsend still supports fluoride.
“I think fluoride is something that needs to be in the water,” said Townsend. “Some families can’t even afford to go to the dentist, so that’s the only fluoride they’re going to get."
WPTV Investigates
What led to Stuart’s decision to remove fluoride from water?
The city of Port St. Lucie told WPTV they’re doing a temporary pause — and they’re in the review process to learn how to move forward.
The city of Stuart also recently paused fluoride use and is waiting to hear back from the state attorney's office about whether they will need to do a referendum to permanently remove fluoride from the water.
