This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1970. 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 encompasses a multi-source contamination area in Wausau where an on-site gasoline service station operated from the 1970s with underground storage tanks installed before 1986, an adjacent industrial facility used pentachlorophenol (PCP) that migrated onto the property via groundwater, and dioxins and furans have been detected in historical fill material at concentrations exceeding Wisconsin DNR industrial and non-industrial direct contact residual contaminant levels. Groundwater monitoring has revealed PCP concentrations more than 2,600 times the NR 140 enforcement standard, along with exceedances for trichloroethene (TCE), naphthalene, and 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene across multiple temporary and permanent monitoring wells. The site is an active Wisconsin DNR Environmental Remediation Program case with Phase II investigation completed and remediation planning underway. 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.
The contaminating operations at this property — including petroleum storage and dispensing from the 1970s and adjacent industrial activities generating PCP contamination documented as early as 1984 — predate 1986 by years or decades. The multi-phase remediation ahead, encompassing groundwater treatment for severely elevated PCP and petroleum compounds, soil remediation addressing dioxin-contaminated fill, and long-term monitoring across the site, represents a substantial future cost obligation that pre-1986 CGL 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.