Multnomah County, OR Right to Farm: Farm Nuisance Protection (2026)
Key Facts
- Applies to
- new dwellings in EFU zone
- Requirement
- recorded deed covenant
- Effect
- waives farm-nuisance claims
- State law implemented
- ORS 30.936
- Not covered
- Portland, other cities
Summary
Before approving a new house in Multnomah County's Exclusive Farm Use zone, the county makes the landowner sign a recorded covenant waiving any nuisance claim against neighboring farms over noise, dust, or odor, per Code § 39.4150.
As a condition of approval of a single family dwelling, the landowner for the dwelling shall sign and record in the deed records for the county a document binding the landowner, and the landowner's successors in interest, prohibiting them from pursuing a claim for relief or cause of action alleging injury from farming or forest practices for which no action or claim is allowed under ORS 30.936 or 30.937.
Full Breakdown
Multnomah County requires landowners building a new single-family dwelling in the Exclusive Farm Use zone to sign and record a deed covenant before approval, under Multnomah County Code § 39.4150. The covenant binds the landowner and successors, permanently waiving any claim or cause of action for injury from nearby farming or forest practices that Oregon's Right to Farm Law, ORS 30.936, already shields from nuisance liability: protecting working farms from being sued over ordinary noise, dust, spraying and odor by neighbors who move in next to them. This applies only to unincorporated county land zoned EFU, not to Portland, Gresham, Troutdale, Fairview or Wood Village.
Violations & Fines
Recording the covenant is a condition of approval, not a fine: the county withholds final approval and a building permit for the single-family dwelling until the landowner signs and records the document in the county deed records.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this apply if I live in Portland?
What exactly does the covenant give up?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Multnomah County
Compare Multnomah County to another location·View the Oregon right to farm overview
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