Tillamook And PGE Sued Over Nitrate Pollution In Oregon’s Drinking Water

Case Overview: A new lawsuit accuses Tillamook and Portland General Electric of contaminating Oregon’s groundwater with nitrate-laden wastewater.

Consumers Affected: Residents using private wells or public systems drawing from the Lower Umatilla Basin groundwater.

Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, Pendleton Division

Portland General Electric and Columbia River Processing, the company behind Tillamook’s Boardman cheese facility, is accused of contaminating groundwater in northern Oregon with dangerously high levels of nitrates, leaving thousands of residents without reliable access to safe drinking water.

A new lawsuit filed by people living in Morrow and Umatilla counties claims industrial wastewater generated by the companies has been improperly disposed of for years, polluting the Lower Umatilla Basin groundwater system that supplies both private wells and municipal water systems. 

Those living in the area claim the contamination has forced families to rely on bottled water, install costly filtration systems, and pay higher utility bills, while facing elevated health risks tied to nitrate exposure.

Oregon Residents Say Pollution Made Tap Water Unsafe

Four Morrow County residents who say nitrate contamination has made safe drinking water harder and more expensive to access filed the lawsuit. 

Michael Pearson, a Boardman homeowner who relies on a private well, learned in 2022 that his water contained nitrate levels far above federal safety limits. A county-provided filtration system failed to make the water safe, forcing his family to rely entirely on bottled water for drinking and cooking, according to the lawsuit. 

Rosa Maria Cavasos, who moved to Boardman in 2024 and uses city water, says she later learned the public supply sometimes exceeded safe nitrate levels. She now buys bottled water for household use, adding ongoing monthly costs. 

The experience is similar for Jeffrey Fleming, an Irrigon resident with a private well, who discovered elevated nitrate levels in 2024 and turned to bottled water and home filtration, which he says still leaves him uncertain about long-term safety. 

Jon Haley, who rents in Irrigon and uses municipal water, has had a similar experience saying he stopped drinking from the tap after learning about contamination and now spends roughly $50 a month on bottled water. 

The plaintiffs say the pollution has imposed health concerns, financial strain, and loss of enjoyment of their homes.

Industrial Wastewater Allegedly Contaminated Groundwater System

Both PGE and Tillamook generate massive volumes of nitrate-heavy wastewater each year and send it to the Port of Morrow, an industrial hub that operates a wastewater treatment and disposal system, for disposal, despite knowing the system routinely violates its environmental permits, the lawsuit claims.

PGE’s Coyote Springs power plant allegedly produces hundreds of millions of gallons of wastewater annually with nitrate concentrations nearly four times the federal drinking water limit. Tillamook’s cheese processing facility is accused of generating wastewater with nitrate levels more than double that threshold. 

The lawsuit also points to Tillamook’s reliance on milk from Threemile Canyon Farms, a large dairy operation that land-applies nitrogen-rich waste in the same groundwater basin.

Rather than fully removing nitrates, the Port allegedly sprays the wastewater onto nearby farmland, often at levels the soil cannot absorb. The lawsuit claims excess nitrates rapidly seep through sandy soil into the groundwater, flowing downhill toward residential wells. Since 2015, the Port has reportedly violated its permit more than 2,000 times.

State testing shows the contamination is widespread. Nearly half of tested wells in Morrow County and roughly a quarter in Umatilla County exceed the federal nitrate limit, with some samples measuring more than four times the safe level.

Contaminated Water Lawsuits Rising Nationwide

The Tillamook case joins other litigation over polluted drinking water nationwide. DuPont recently agreed to pay $27 million to settle PFAS contamination claims in Hoosick Falls, New York.

Meanwhile, homeowners in Imperial Beach, California, are suing over long-standing sewage pollution tied to cross-border wastewater flows. They say that officials failed to prevent or reduce pollution from nearby waters, severely affecting their property values and quality of life.

In this lawsuit, the Oregon residents want to represent two groups: residents who rely on private wells and those whose public water systems draw from contaminated groundwater in the affected areas. 

They are suing under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and Oregon negligence, trespass, and nuisance laws, seeking an order to halt the alleged pollution, require cleanup, establish medical monitoring for affected residents, and ensure access to clean, safe drinking water.

The plaintiffs argue that communities should not bear the cost of contamination caused by corporate waste practices.

Case Details

• Lawsuit: Pearson, et al., v. Portland General Electric Company and Columbia River Processing, LLC
• Case Number:  2:25-cv-02249-HL
• Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, Pendleton Division 

Plaintiffs' Attorneys

• Michael A. Bliven and Robert F. Dwyer, III (Bliven Law Firm, PC)
• Steve W. Berman, Abigail D. Pershing, and Meredith S. Simons (Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP)
• John Heenan (Heenan & Cook)

Have you ever been concerned about the safety of your drinking water? Let us know why and what you did about it in the comments section below!