This property has a documented history as a landfill going back to 1947. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
The Arper-Dickey Landfill operated as a Health District-permitted mixed municipal solid waste disposal site in Silverdale from 1947 to 1955, with permits requiring cover material to be placed over waste at least monthly. The site was subsequently listed on Washington State Ecology's Confirmed and Suspected Contaminated Sites list and underwent a formal hazard assessment; that investigation found no evidence of contaminant releases, and Ecology issued a No Further Action determination on that basis. No remediation was required beyond the cover-material practices employed during the landfill's original operation. That history could support an insurance cost recovery claim against carriers who issued insurance policies 40+ years ago.
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 landfill operated for nearly a decade beginning in 1947 — a period when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were the industry standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington State. The property's appearance on the CSCS list reflects Ecology's recognition that municipal waste disposal sites from this era routinely generate contamination risk warranting formal investigation. Though the current assessment found no releases, the operational history that triggered the investigation falls squarely within the pre-1986 window in which historical CGL carriers may retain coverage obligations, and that history cannot be erased by the No Further Action determination.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful cost recovery claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage for costs already incurred. Restorical's forensic accounting team works to re-establish and document past cleanup expenditures, ensuring the strongest possible basis for recovery.
Recovering Costs from an Older Cleanup
If this site reached No Further Action years ago, the original cleanup expenditures may be difficult to reconstruct. Restorical's forensic accounting team specializes in re-establishing and documenting past cleanup costs — even decades later — to build the strongest possible basis for an insurance recovery claim.
What We Look For
- Historical insurance policies (pre-1986)
- Policy numbers, carrier names, and coverage periods
- Connection between contamination timing and policy period
- Evidence linking cleanup obligation to insured activity
What We Deliver
- Historical Coverage Chart
- Trigger Analysis & Property/Policy Nexus
- Coverage strategy with recommendations
- Insurance funding for your remediation
- Claims Management & Forensic Accounting
The Restorical Proven Process
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Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.
