Metropolitan Adelaide was fluoridated in February 1971.

In that same year it was decided that Mount Gambier would NOT be fluoridated. This mainly due to the efforts of Ms. Helen Lesley Gebhardt who campaigned since the mid 1960's against water fluoridation.

On 6 July 2005, SA Department of Health (now SA Health) advertised their "public consultation meeting" in the Border Watch. No mention of water fluoridation was mentioned as a key topic.

View SA Health State Oral Health Plan Public Consultation Meeting Ad

In early 2007 the news that Mount Gambier would be fluoridated hit the headlines again. Members of group Network Against Fluoride attended Council Chambers Meeting on Tuesday 13 March 2007 and expressed concerns at the lack of public consultation. As a result the City Council wrote a letter to SA Health Minister John Hill requesting more information and public participation.

In a letter dated 27 May 2007 Minister Hill replied in writing to the Mount Gambier City Council. In essence his letter was of the vein "too late bad luck - you had your chance to have your say at the 2005 public meeting". But did we really have a choice back then?

View the Letter from Minister Hill to the Mount Gambier City Council


Minister Hill alludes to a number of submissions which supported water fluoridation. Choice Mount Gambier challenges these assertions because one of the key players, the District Council of Grant 3/4 page submission made no mention of endorsing water fluoridation. Its key points are the need for better dental support and dental education.

View the District of Grant Submission.

We also challenge the Minister to provide us with a copy of all other submissions made at said meeting on 6 July 2005.

In February 2007 a petition went out around Mount Gambier to ascertain people's wills on the issue of water fluoridation. The response garnered 1500 persons questioning water fluoridation. This petition was presented to SA Parliament House of Assembly MP Rory McEwen on 7 March 2007.

View SA Hansard - House of Assembly- Water, Mount Gambier

But consider all this in the context of the letter to the Petitioners below wherein Minister Hill informs the public that the decision to fluoridate regional areas was already made in 1983.

So the question arises what was the point of inviting the public to the State Oral Health Plan Public Consultation Meeting of June 2005?

View the Letter from Minister Hill to the Mount Gambier Petitioners 25 June 2007.

Remember these decisions by SA Health were made administratively in the absence of any pertinent South Australian Water Fluoridation legislation. This is in stark contrast to other States and Terroritories in Australian who have their own water fluoridation legislation in some form.

Choice Mount Gambier calls for a South Australian Water Fluoridation Bill to be passed and voted through SA Parliament so as to bring us on par with the rest of the Nation.

Interestingly the issue of water fluoridation was discussed as a bill in SA Youth Parliament in 2008. These are our future politicians not yet milled by the beast that is modern politics. They voted overwhelming against water fluoridation for SA. Sadly it was only a parliamentary exercise.