This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1922. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could help fund the ongoing and future cleanup under Oregon DEQ oversight.
This industrial property has operated as a railroad tie treating plant since 1922, passing through multiple owners including Union Pacific Railroad predecessors, Kerr-McGee, and the current operator AmeriTies. Decades of creosote treatment and pentachlorophenol use contaminated soil and groundwater with dense non-aqueous phase liquid (DNAPL) creosote, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pentachlorophenol, naphthalene, arsenic, and benzene — with an underground pipe carrying contaminated stormwater runoff to the Columbia River from 1937 to 1971. The site was listed on the EPA National Priorities List in 1990, and a Consent Decree entered in 1997 obligates Union Pacific Railroad to fund all investigation and cleanup costs. Groundwater extraction and treatment systems remain in operation, Columbia River shoreline sediments were capped in 1995, and Oregon DEQ has confirmed that recovery and monitoring at the site will continue indefinitely. That history could support an insurance coverage claim against the carriers who issued policies more than 40 years ago — coverage that could help fund the cleanup ahead.
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 Oregon — and those policies may provide coverage that remains enforceable today. 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 this property originated from tie-treating operations that began in 1922 and continued for decades, placing more than sixty years of industrial activity at this facility well before 1986. The ongoing groundwater extraction and treatment, DNAPL recovery, and indefinite monitoring obligations directed under the Consent Decree represent substantial current and future cleanup costs that pre-1986 carriers whose policies were in effect during those operational years may be obligated 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
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.