This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1974. 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 supported sand and gravel operations in Portland for decades, with underground storage tanks on site since at least the mid-1970s — including a 10,000-gallon gasoline UST decommissioned in 1999 and four additional tanks decommissioned in 2021. Soil and groundwater sampling first detected diesel and heavy oils around the gasoline UST in 1998, and follow-up investigations in 2022–2023 found diesel concentrations in soil reaching 13,000 ppm — nearly three times Oregon DEQ's risk-based concentration of 4,600 ppm for construction worker direct contact. Oregon DEQ filed a Cost Recovery Agreement in January 2022, and the site remains under active agency oversight with an assigned project manager and no No Further Action determination 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 petroleum contamination at this property traces to underground storage tank operations in place by the mid-1970s — well before 1986 — with tanks remaining active through decommissioning events in 1999 and 2021. With diesel concentrations in soil at nearly three times Oregon DEQ's risk-based screening level and groundwater impacts still under investigation, the remediation, monitoring, and compliance costs ahead under Oregon DEQ's Cost Recovery Agreement represent a substantial ongoing and future obligation that pre-1986 carriers may be required 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.