This property has a documented history as a landfill going back to 1954. 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 served as a coal ash disposal site from 1954 through 2000, receiving fly ash and slag generated by an adjacent coal-fired power station over more than four decades of operation. Coal combustion residuals — including arsenic, boron, iron, selenium, and sulfate — have contaminated groundwater beneath and downgradient of the disposal area, with an impacted plume migrating south and southwest toward the Rock River and into a residential neighborhood where at least one private drinking water well has reported boron concentrations exceeding the Wisconsin NR 140 Enforcement Standard. The landfill was formally closed in 2015 with installation of a final cover system, and the site is now an active Wisconsin DNR Environmental Remediation Program case with an approved Site Investigation Report and ongoing groundwater monitoring. 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.
Coal ash disposal operations at this property began in 1954 and continued for more than three decades before 1986, contaminating groundwater with arsenic, boron, and other coal combustion residuals across a plume that has migrated off-site into a residential neighborhood where private drinking water wells have exceeded Wisconsin NR 140 Enforcement Standards. The ongoing and future costs of groundwater investigation, plume delineation, residential well monitoring, and remediation required under the Wisconsin DNR Environmental Remediation Program represent substantial obligations that historical pre-1986 carriers insuring the businesses that operated here 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.