This property has a documented history as a public works and maintenance facility predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could recover the cleanup costs already paid.
Petroleum-contaminated soil was discovered at this Kittitas County site in September 1998 when excavation crews installing a water intake structure for the Bonneville Power Administration's Clark Flats Fisheries Acclimation Facility encountered contamination concentrated near an existing irrigation pump station. Cleanup under Ecology's standard program included the excavation and removal of approximately 7,236 tons of petroleum-contaminated soil in 1998–1999, supplemented by boom and sorbent containment measures. The site remained on Ecology's contaminated sites list and underwent assessment and monitoring until a No Further Action determination was issued in August 2008. 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 petroleum contamination at this site — diesel, oil, and gasoline — was concentrated around an existing irrigation pump station whose operational history predates the 1998 discovery, and the sheer volume of impacted soil removed suggests releases that accumulated over an extended period rather than a single recent event. If that infrastructure was in use before 1986, occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies issued during that window may cover the remediation expenditures incurred here — including the large-scale soil excavation, containment operations, and a decade of post-cleanup monitoring. Pre-1986 CGL policies in Washington carried no effective pollution exclusion, making them a plausible recovery vehicle for documented costs of this magnitude.
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
Ready to learn more?
Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.
