This property has a documented history as a landfill going back to 1968. 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.

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.

Landfill operations at this property ran from 1968 through 1989, with chlorinated solvents — including tetrachloroethylene, trichloroethylene, and vinyl chloride — being disposed of throughout the eighteen years of activity that preceded 1986. With a vinyl chloride plume continuing to migrate offsite into private drinking water wells, Wisconsin DNR requiring additional investigation beyond the supplemental study submitted in late 2024, and further remediation and long-term groundwater monitoring still needed to achieve regulatory closure, the future costs of that remaining work represent obligations that the pre-1986 carriers of 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.