BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) – A Central Alabama Water (CAW) spokesperson is providing context related to the decision to stop adding fluoride to its drinking water. That context alleges that multiple plants stopped fluoridating their water under the Birmingham Water Works Board as far back as January 2023.
According to CAW records, the Western Filter Plant stopped fluoridating water on March 18, 2024. On Aug. 23, 2023, the Carson Filter Plant stopped fluoridating water and on Jan. 7, 2023 the Putnam Filter Plant stopped fluoridating water.
The CAW spokesperson said all of the plants stopped fluoridating water due to a lack of maintenance and all were prior to Act No. 2025-297 being enacted which is the act that restructured the water board.
According to the CAW spokesperson, there is no record that the Birmingham Water Works Board provided any notice to the public when they took those systems offline.
“Once CAW’s leadership team learned that only Shades Mountain Filter Plant’s fluoridation system was the only one functioning, they realized it wouldn’t be right to have only part of the system fluoridated when we couldn’t afford to repair the other three plants for at least two years,” wrote the CAW spokesperson.
Original article online at: https://www.wbrc.com/2026/03/24/birmingham-water-works-allegedly-failed-alert-public-about-3-plants-not-fluoridating-water/