This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1985. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could help fund the ongoing and future cleanup under Oregon DEQ oversight.
This 67-acre industrial property on the Willamette River has been in use since at least 1985, preceded by Schnitzer Steel's demolition yard operations on a portion of the site. A 1980 trichloroethane (TCA) dip tank spill and eleven underground storage tanks containing petroleum fuels, toluene, and waste oil have left contamination across soil, groundwater, and sediment in all three site areas — including PCBs in offshore sediments and TCA in groundwater requiring active extraction and soil vapor treatment systems since 2006. Oregon DEQ issued a Consent Order in 2013 directing identification and control of contamination sources reaching the Willamette River, and the site falls within the Portland Harbor Superfund area with EPA overseeing riverbank remediation since 2019. The remedial investigation across all three areas remains incomplete, source control evaluations are ongoing, and no No Further Action determination has been issued. 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 traces to industrial operations and chemical handling that predate 1986, including a documented 1980 TCA dip tank spill and eleven underground storage tanks containing petroleum fuels, toluene, and waste oil from historical operations on this Willamette River site. With a 2013 Oregon DEQ Consent Order directing source control to the Willamette River, remedial investigations still incomplete across three site areas, active groundwater extraction and soil vapor treatment systems, and EPA oversight of riverbank remediation within the Portland Harbor Superfund area, the substantial investigation, remediation, and long-term monitoring work ahead represents 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
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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.