Fluoride is returning to the City of Buffalo's drinking water after a nine-year absence. Today, fluoride tankers arrived at the F.G. Ward Pumping Station on Exchange Street. Fluoridation is set to resume within a couple of days.

Investigative reporting by WGRZ's Charlie Specht uncovered the story in 2022. He discovered that back in 2015, the City of Buffalo had ceased fluoridating the drinking water delivered to its over 280,000 residents. No one outside the Buffalo Water Board appeared to have been notified. 

Once the lack of fluoridation was revealed, local dentists joined other leaders in pressuring the city to rectify the situation. In a 2023 lawsuit, residents sued Buffalo's Water Board and city leadership for eliminating fluoride from city water without notifying residents, seeking in excess of $160 million for damage to resident health and wellness.

Fluoride is a naturally occurring element found in the earth, rock, soil and water. It has long been known to help maintain healthy mineralization that, among other health benefits, protects teeth from plaque and bacteria that cause tooth decay. Children especially who lack sufficient fluoride in their drinking water can develop demineralized teeth that are susceptible to decay, infection, and tooth loss.

One of the dental advocates pushing for fluoride restoration is a past president of the New York State Dental Association, Brendan P. Dowd, D.D.S. Dr. Dowd has been a Buffalo resident for the past nine years. Others included Tom Curran, D.D.S, a retired oral and maxillofacial surgeon, and Johnny Johnson, D.D.S., pediatric dentist and president of the American Fluoridation Society. Dr. Curran described the city's decision to quietly stop using fluoride in the drinking water, “surreptitious.” 

Water delivered through the Erie County Water Authority was not implicated in the lawsuit. The state of New York, excluding New York City, has 939 different water authorities that report to the New York State Comptroller's Office, including: 464 water districts, 9 county water authorities, 54 city water authorities, 371 village water districts, and 21 town and joint town and water districts.