Graham-area landfill agrees to settle Muck Creek pollution lawsuit for $734K, environmental group says
A Graham-area landfill accused of polluting a tributary of the Nisqually River has agreed to settle a lawsuit, according to the environmental advocacy group that took the landfill to court.
The Puget Soundkeeper Alliance said in a statement Tuesday that the LRI Landfill will “pay $734,000 to fund third party environmental grants in the vicinity of the Nisqually River watershed and areas impacted by illegal discharges of landfill fluid, oils, and other contaminants caused by LRI’s failure to meet both Industrial and Construction Stormwater Permit standards.”
The lawsuit filed in 2017 in U.S. District Court alleged that pollution from the landfill at 30919 Meridian E. had exceeded what’s allowed by its permits and the federal Clean Water Act in recent years.
Polluted stormwater was discharged into the waterway, known both as Muck Creek and South Creek, as well as its unnamed tributary and wetlands adjacent to the facility, the Puget Soundkeeper Alliance alleged.
“LRI Landfill has a long and complicated history of disappointing community members with its poor pollution track record – and we hope that today marks a turning point for this facility,” staff attorney Katelyn Kinn said in the environmental group’s statement. “Moving forward, LRI has the opportunity to work to become a better neighbor. We look forward to tracking their progress, and holding them accountable.”
Efforts by The News Tribune to reach LRI for comment were unsuccessful.
