Some Alabama residents learn their water hasn't had fluoride for years

In Birmingham, Alabama, fluoride has not been added to most drinking water for at least two years, but the public was not notified.

Last week, residents of Birmingham, Alabama, were informed that their drinking water would no longer contain fluoride. Then came a twist: It turned out that their water utility had, without telling the public, actually stopped adding it years ago.

John Matson, a spokesperson for Central Alabama Water, which serves Birmingham and its surrounding suburbs, confirmed to NBC News that two of the utility’s four water filtration plants had temporarily stopped fluoridating in 2023, and a third had stopped in March 2024. The changes were made under prior leadership, he said, when the utility had a different name.

Matson said Central Alabama Water has found “no record” of the public being notified.

WBRC 6 News was first to report that fluoridation in Birmingham had been quietly halted as early as 2023.

The revelation came just days after the utility announced that as a new policy, it would not add fluoride to Birmingham’s drinking water moving forward. The decision was made based on “a comprehensive evaluation of safety, infrastructure and financial considerations,” Central Alabama Water said in a press release. It cited the high cost of maintaining and repairing its aging fluoridation systems, which it said would require more than $3.7 million.