Lamb Weston agrees to pay $25 million in LUBGWMA lawsuit settlement
By Griffin Beach on Thursday, November 12th, 2026 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – Lamb Weston has agreed to pay $25 million into a settlement fund for affected homeowners to resolve its part of a class-action lawsuit over groundwater pollution in the Lower Umatilla Basin Groundwater Management Area, according to a news release from Hagens Berman, the law firm representing the plaintiffs.
This resolves the class action against Lamb Weston, but Hagens Berman said plaintiffs are still pursuing claims against Port of Morrow, Threemile Canyon Farms, Portland General Electric, and Columbia River Processing.
Earlier this year, Amazon Data Services settled its portion of the case for $20.5 million, and Madison Ranches, Inc. settled for $6.2 million.
The lawsuit alleges those companies contributed to ongoing nitrate pollution of groundwater in the management area, affecting homeowners’ water wells and causing health issues.
Under the settlement agreement, Lamb Weston continues to dispute the plaintiffs’ claims in the lawsuit, but said the resolution allows the company to focus on long-term solutions for the issue.
The settlement fund that the $25 million goes into will assist homeowners with solutions, including drilling deeper wells, installing water filtration systems and paying water bills for residents connecting to city water systems.
Hagens Berman noted that this settlement requires no immediate action from affected residents. If the court grants preliminary approval of the settlement, a court-appointed settlement administrator will establish a website and notify eligible residents.
John F. Kilkenny Post Office and District Courthouse in Pendleton.
