This property has a documented history as a public works and maintenance facility going back to 1940. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.

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.

Pesticide contamination at this site traces to municipal crop-duster support operations that began in the 1940s — more than four decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were still issued without effective pollution exclusions. The City of Sunnyside, named as a potentially liable person, now faces documented remediation expenditures tied directly to those pre-1986 operations: soil excavation, groundwater injection treatment, long-term monitoring projected across decades. Historical carriers who issued CGL coverage to the city during that operational window may be obligated both to recover costs already incurred and to fund remediation still to come.

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.