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 multi-phase investigation and remediation work ahead under Wisconsin DNR oversight.
This property operated as a RCRA-licensed Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facility handling hazardous waste for decades, with contamination first documented through soil and groundwater sampling in the late 1970s and a Wisconsin DNR case opened in 1978. Chlorinated solvents (PCE, TCE, TCA, DCE, DCA), non-chlorinated solvents, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and 1,4-dioxane have been confirmed in soil and groundwater, with a volatile organic compound plume migrating off-site into Lowes Creek Park and affecting private residential wells sampled as recently as 2024. Active remediation under Wisconsin DNR Environmental Remediation Program and RCRA Corrective Action oversight has cumulatively removed more than 17,000 pounds of VOCs from soil, and in the 2024 reporting period alone, 1.4 million gallons of contaminated groundwater were recovered and nearly 1,900 pounds of VOCs were removed through groundwater extraction and soil vapor extraction. 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 Wisconsin — 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.
Hazardous waste handling operations at this facility were well established by the mid-1970s, with soil and groundwater contamination documented years before 1986 and a Superfund Preliminary Assessment conducted as early as 1983. The ongoing groundwater extraction, soil vapor extraction, off-site plume containment, residential well monitoring, and long-term RCRA Corrective Action obligations ahead represent substantial future costs that those historical 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
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.