This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1957. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
This Fife property became contaminated in the mid-1970s when the then-owners allowed low-lying eastern portions of the site to be landfilled with marine sediments dredged from adjacent to the Occidental Chemical (Hooker Chemical) dock on the Hylebos waterway in the Tacoma tideflats. Those sediments carried sludge residues from Occidental and Hooker's industrial production of trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, and other chlorinated solvents. Approximately 2,000 tons of contaminated dredge material were covered with clean fill in the late 1970s as a containment measure. Remediation now underway under the Voluntary Cleanup Program includes excavation of contaminated soils, in-situ chemical oxidation, air sparging and soil vapor extraction, and ongoing groundwater monitoring. 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 chlorinated-solvent contamination deposited here originated from Occidental and Hooker's industrial dock operations — activities that predate 1986 by at least a decade, when occurrence-based CGL policies without effective pollution exclusions were the standard form of commercial liability coverage. Property ownership and business operations at this site ran from the late 1950s through the late 1970s, entirely within that pre-1986 window. The remediation program now in progress — soil excavation, chemical oxidation, vapor extraction, and long-term monitoring — represents costs that historical carriers whose policies were in force during those operational years may be obligated both to recover and to fund going forward.
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.
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.
