This property has a documented history as a landfill going back to 1958. Historical insurance policies issued during operations at this property and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
The Pasco Sanitary Landfill began operations in 1958, authorized by the Franklin County Planning Commission and established by John Dietrich d/b/a Pasco Garbage Service as a garbage disposal and burning dump. The facility converted to a sanitary landfill in 1971 and accepted drummed and liquid industrial wastes through at least 1974; it was listed on the National Priorities List in 1990. Active cleanup has been underway since at least 1991, including soil vapor extraction, NoVOCs groundwater treatment, and provision of alternate water supplies to affected households; future remediation phases call for excavation of drums and waste totaling over 20,000 cubic yards across multiple zones, installation of engineered caps and lined on-site cells, and construction of a landfill gas extraction system, with perpetual maintenance and monitoring planned. 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 contamination at this site — volatile organic compounds and industrial waste constituents migrating into soil vapor and groundwater — originates from drummed and liquid-waste disposal operations conducted before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies lacked effective pollution exclusions. The pre-1986 operators and their insurers had coverage in force during the precise window when industrial wastes were accepted and began releasing into the subsurface. The remediation expenditures documented since 1991, combined with a multi-decade future program involving large-scale excavation, engineered containment, and perpetual monitoring, represent costs that historical carriers 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.
