This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1900. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.

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.

Contamination at this waterway — including nickel and organic matter from seafood processing — originated from industrial operations that began more than eight decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were still the industry standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion under Washington law. The site's documented remediation expenditures span sixty years: two rounds of large-scale dredging, a decade-long RI/FS process, and an array of capital-intensive remedial alternatives still under active evaluation. Historical carriers who issued CGL policies to the lumber, mining, and seafood operators at this waterway during that pre-1986 window may be obligated both to recover past cleanup costs and to fund the substantial remediation work that lies ahead.

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.