The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday pressed forward with a controversial plan to put fluoride into most of the county’s drinking water during an emotional hearing in which dozens of speakers debated whether the chemical compound is a panacea or a poison.

A federal appeals court has reinstated a lawsuit brought by retired Sonoma County government employees claiming the Board of Supervisors reneged on a pledge to provide lifetime health benefits.

Sonoma County supervisors said Tuesday they hope to strike a ‘balanced approach’ between power line safety and environmental protection under PG&E’s major transmission line through the county.

Work began Monday at the site of the planned Indian casino on Rohnert Park’s northwest outskirts.

County officials hold most of the cards when negotiating conditions for new developments. But they now have a weak hand in confronting a project they roundly oppose, the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria’s plan to open a casino outside Rohnert Park.

A lawsuit that questions the right of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria to open a casino next to Rohnert Park may delay the project but is unlikely to stop it, some Indian law experts say.

The California Public Records Act, as with newspapers, faces its own threats, some of which have been on display here in Sonoma County concerning the stories about the embattled former agriculture commissioner.

For 12 years, Steven Woodside has served as county government’s top legal advisor. His top assistant, Bruce Goldstein, will assume the post of county counsel when Woodside retires in January.