The settlement resolves a lawsuit filed back in 2007, in which the city claimed manufacturers and distributors of Shell oil products contaminated some of their water wells.
The settlement will be earmarked for cleanup and mitigation of contaminated wells belonging to the City of Fresno over a ten-year period.
"Bringing the wells back online would help the community in identifying new water sources. We know living in the Central Valley and drought, identifying new water sources is always good for the city," said Fresno City Attorney Andrew Janz.
The settlement is the largest in U.S. history for this type of environmental claim.
Currently, all existing city water sources do not rely on the out-of-service wells that were involved in the lawsuit.