This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.

Why Historical Insurance Policies May Be Accessible

Pre-1986 Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies were occurrence-based and did not contain an effective pollution exclusion in Washington. If contamination occurred while those policies were active, those historical insurance carriers may still have a legal obligation to fund the cleanup costs, even if the business closed or the property changed hands.

The contamination at Balmer Yard originates from fueling infrastructure and operations that predate 1986 — a former Bunker C oil tank documented in a 1991 report, a caboose fueling line leak, and locomotive maintenance activities spanning decades before that cutoff. The remediation work still ahead — full-scale LNAPL recovery, remedial investigation and design, and long-term groundwater management — will carry substantial costs. Pre-1986 Commercial General Liability policies issued to operators during those fueling years had no effective pollution exclusion and may be a source of funding for exactly the cleanup obligations this site has yet to discharge.

Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful coverage claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage. Restorical then manages the claim, including accounting, to ensure the cleanup is funded in a timely manner.