This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could help fund the ongoing and future cleanup under Oregon DEQ oversight.
This industrial property operated as a glass manufacturing facility with on-site lagoons that discharged PCB-contaminated wastewater via ditch into Johnson Lake. City of Portland sampling in 1995 confirmed PCBs in lake sediment at 380 ppb, and fish tissue PCB-126 concentrations have continuously exceeded the 2007 Record of Decision thresholds since monitoring began in 2004. A sand cap remedy completed in 2012 has failed to reduce fish tissue PCB levels, and Oregon DEQ is now directing additional sediment characterization, passive sampling, congener analysis, and potential source control measures — with a revised Sampling and Analysis Plan in preparation for 2025. 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 PCB contamination in Johnson Lake originated from on-site lagoon discharges during decades of glass manufacturing operations well before 1986, with PCB-laden wastewater flowing via ditch into the lake throughout a period that ended no later than the 1979 federal ban on PCBs. With the 2012 sand cap remedy failing to reduce fish tissue PCB levels after more than a decade and Oregon DEQ now directing expanded sediment characterization, passive sampling, congener analysis, and potential additional source control and remediation, the work ahead — new sampling campaigns, possible supplemental remedial measures, and continued compliance monitoring — represents substantial costs going forward that historical pre-1986 carriers may be obligated to fund.
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.