Lead In Drinking Water In Alabama
What residents of Alabama need to know about lead in drinking water — including how it enters water, which utilities have documented violations, and what steps to take.
Source: EPA SDWIS, Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM), CDC · Last reviewed: 2025-01-01
Quick Answer
Is lead in drinking water a real concern in Alabama?
Yes — Birmingham, Mobile, and Tuscaloosa have significant concentrations of pre-1986 housing where lead solder and older service connections may be present.
Is this mostly a public-water issue, a private-well issue, or both?
Both public water service lines and household plumbing in older urban neighborhoods; Birmingham's older city core has the highest concentration of aging infrastructure.
What is the main reason residents should care?
Alabama's older industrial and port cities — Birmingham, Mobile, Huntsville, and Tuscaloosa — have large inventories of pre-1986 housing. Water chemistry in parts of northern Alabama is naturally soft, increasing the corrosiveness of water toward lead plumbing materials.
Key Facts
| Federal Lead Action Level | 15 µg/L — no safe level per CDC |
| Federal MCLG | Zero |
| Primary concern | Pre-1986 housing in Birmingham, Mobile, Tuscaloosa — lead solder and aging service connections |
| Water chemistry | Northern Alabama soft water can be more corrosive toward lead plumbing materials |
| State oversight | Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) |
Why This Matters in Alabama
Alabama has more than 1,300 public water systems under ADEM oversight, ranging from large municipal utilities serving Birmingham and Mobile to very small rural systems. Birmingham's historic neighborhoods — Avondale, Woodlawn, North Birmingham — include dense concentrations of pre-1920 housing, where lead service lines and lead solder are most common. Northern Alabama's softer water chemistry (particularly in areas drawing from mountain streams) can accelerate leaching from older plumbing materials. ADEM enforces the federal Lead and Copper Rule and requires utilities to maintain and submit lead service line inventories under the LCRR.
Alabama Utilities With Lead Violation Records
The utilities listed below have at least one lead violation on record in EPA's SDWIS database. Violations may be open or resolved — see individual utility pages for current status and risk level.
Central Alabama Water System
Alabama · 585,000 served
City of Montgomery Ww&ssb
Montgomery · 276,000 served
Bessemer Water Service
Bessemer · 86,091 served
Cullman County Water Department
Alabama · 56,628 served
City of Enterprise, the Wwb of the
Enterprise · 48,000 served
City of Prattville, the Ww Board of the
Prattville · 46,614 served
Us Army Garrison-redstone Arsenal
Redstone Arsenal · 44,472 served
Central Elmore Water & Sewer Authority
Wetumpka · 39,798 served
City of Cullman
Cullman · 36,312 served
West Morgan-east Lawrence W&s Authority
Decatur · 30,000 served
How Lead Gets Into Drinking Water
Lead service lines
The pipe connecting a home to the water main may be made of lead, especially in pre-1986 construction. Water sitting in these lines can accumulate lead before it reaches the tap.
Lead solder
Lead solder at pipe joints was banned for potable water systems in 1986. Homes built before that date — including significant portions of older Alabama cities — may still have lead solder throughout their plumbing.
Older brass fixtures
Faucets, valves, and fixtures with high lead content were common before the 2014 revision of 'lead-free' standards. Replacing older fixtures at kitchen and drinking taps can meaningfully reduce exposure.
Corrosive water chemistry
Soft, acidic, or low-alkalinity water dissolves lead from plumbing more readily. Utilities use orthophosphate and other corrosion control treatments, but household plumbing after the meter is not within their control.
Who Should Pay Closest Attention
Families with children under six in older Birmingham neighborhoods, renters in pre-1978 multifamily housing in Mobile and Tuscaloosa, and households that have never had their tap water tested are most at risk.
Families with children under six
Pregnant residents
Households in homes built before 1986
Renters who cannot inspect building plumbing
Residents on a confirmed lead service line
Households that had plumbing work done recently (disturbances dislodge protective scale)
How to Check Your Situation in Alabama
- 1
Identify your water utility. Use the ZIP lookup below or browse the Alabama utility directory on this site.
- 2
Read your utility's page on this site to see its current risk level and any open lead violations.
- 3
Contact your utility and ask for your address-level service line material status. Under the federal Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR), utilities must maintain and provide this information.
- 4
Review your utility's most recent Consumer Confidence Report (CCR) — mailed annually or available on the utility's website.
- 5
Consider testing your tap water at a Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM)-certified lab. Your state health department or Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) maintains a list of certified labs.
- 6
If you have young children or are pregnant, install a certified NSF/ANSI 53 or 58 filter at the kitchen tap as a precautionary measure.
Treatment Options
Boiling does not remove lead. Use a certified filter for drinking and cooking water.
NSF/ANSI Standard 53 — Activated Carbon Block
Under-sink or pitcher filters certified to Standard 53 are independently verified to reduce lead. Replace filters on the manufacturer's schedule — an overdue filter may not perform as certified.
NSF/ANSI Standard 58 — Reverse Osmosis
RO systems certified to Standard 58 remove 95–99% of lead and a broad range of contaminants. Requires under-sink installation. More comprehensive than Standard 53 for households with multiple contaminant concerns.
Flushing — temporary mitigation only
EPA recommends flushing the cold tap for 30 seconds to 2 minutes if water has sat in pipes for 6+ hours. Not a substitute for certified filtration or service line replacement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Pages
Lead — National Overview
All U.S. utilities with lead records
Alabama State Overview
All utilities and water quality data
Nitrate in Drinking Water
A separate but common concern
Reverse Osmosis Guide
Removes 95–99% of lead
Activated Carbon Filter Guide
NSF/ANSI 53 certified options
All Contaminants
Complete reference library
Data Sources & Provenance
All data on this page is sourced from official U.S. government or public datasets.
Find Your Utility
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Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) ↗