Hastings School Strike for Climate cancelled as anti-fluoride protest rolls into town at same time

Simultaneous protests in Hastings just a few hundred metres apart on Friday offered a chance for residents to decide which issue they cared most passionately about - fluoridation of the water or an impending climate catastrophe.

It was all set to be a fascinating case study in what fires people up, but after the organiser for the Hastings Clocktower protest of School Strike 4 Climate Aotearoa (SS4CNZ) fell ill, it wasn’t really a fair comparison.

The school strikers were due at the clocktower at noon, one of the protests against the climate crisis planned in towns and cities across the country, but it was cancelled at the last minute.

Fluoride Free New Zealand led a protest outside the Hastings District Council building, also at midday, showing their opposition to the council’s decision to start fluoridation without any public consultation and without completing a New Zealand Bill of Rights analysis.

HDC plans to reintroduce fluoride into Hastings’ water supply from next week after an eight-year hiatus.

The council stopped adding fluoride to its water supply when it began adding chlorine in 2016 after the Havelock North water crisis.

Four people died and 5000 people fell ill after the town’s water supply was contaminated with campylobacter.

In July 2022, then-director general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield directed 14 councils, including Hastings District Council, to add fluoride to their water supplies.

Their protest drew a crowd of about 60 people with placards criticising fluoride.

Angela Hair said she was presenting a letter to the Hastings District Council urging them not to rush the decision to reintroduce fluoride. Photo / Warren Buckland

Organiser Angela Hair, of Fluoride Free Hastings and homoeopath at Concordia Health, said she was presenting a letter to the council urging them not to rush the decision to reintroduce fluoride.

“Nelson City Council has had an extension until December 31, 2024,” Hair said.

“We think all councils should be given the same extension.”

She said local councils should wait for the outcome of a court case in the United States, Food & Water Watch Inc. v. EPA, where a federal judge in California will decide if adding fluoride to the drinking water is risky.

Riana Clarke, Ministry of Health national clinical director oral health, told Hawke’s Bay Today recently that community water fluoridation was proven to be a safe, affordable, and effective method of preventing tooth decay.

It has been endorsed by the World Health Organisation and other international and national health and scientific experts.

“In 2014, the Royal Society Te Apārangi, jointly with the Office of the Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor, reviewed the substantial body of scientific evidence on the efficacy and safety of fluoridation of public water supplies,” Clarke said.

“The report concluded that there are no adverse health effects of any significance from fluoridation at the level used in New Zealand.

“In June 2021, the Office of the Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor released an evidence update confirming this conclusion.”

She said Manatū Hauora keeps a watching brief on the national and international evidence base.

Michelle Kang, Sustainable Hawke's Bay community education lead, said after Friday's cancellation that more youth climate protests will be planned in Hawke's Bay. Photo / Warren Buckland

Despite the cancellation of the Hastings school climate protest, about 25 people still gathered at the foot of the city’s clock tower with placards about climate change, and also supporting the plight of the Palestine people.

The nationwide SS4CNZ protest is focused on six demands according to the SS4CNZ website, which are mostly climate-focused but now include a call to “Free Palestine”.

The demands are: Keep the ban on offshore oil and gas exploration, end the fast track approvals bill, toitū (do not touch) Te Tiriti O Waitangi, climate education for all, lower the voting age to 16 and “Free Palestine: End the Genocide”.

Zoe Solomon, the organiser of the Hawke’s Bay Climate Change Strike, apologised for the late notice about the strike being cancelled due to her being unwell.

Michelle Kang, Sustainable Hawke’s Bay community education lead, said there were plans to have more youth climate protests in Hawke’s Bay in the future.

James Pocock joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2021 and writes breaking news and features, with a focus on environment, local government and post-cyclone issues in the region. He has a keen interest in finding the bigger picture in research and making it more accessible to audiences. He lives in Napier. james.pocock@nzme.co.nz