Hamilton city councillor Dave Macpherson remembers submissions from disgruntled locals against fluoride in their water in the late 1990s.
"You could probably loosely call them the usual suspects - just a few locals for the first three or four years. People thought they were nutters at the time or quite
obsessive and some of these people are still submitting."
In 2006, a referendum on water fluoridation drew 38 per cent of Hamilton City voters, 70 per cent of whom voted to keep fluoridation.
But Mr Macpherson said the anti-fluoride movement was undeterred and continued to grow every year, with more voices, including scientists, medical professionals and nurses, adding their names to the pile of submissions landing on council desks.
The referendum, which cost $160,000, was not binding, but Mr Macpherson said the issue could not be ignored.
