Pollution Concerns for Sewer Line Installation Contractors • Beacon Hill Associates

Sewer line contractors typically work below ground, so they often aren’t sure what they may encounter at jobsites. In addition to spills and wastewater considerations, there may be storage tanks, piping, or other equipment that could be punctured, affecting soil or groundwater. Take a look at some of the specific pollution concerns sewer line installation contractors face:

Spills or backﬂow of contents from connected structures such as cesspools, septic tanks, or grease traps, etc. into the environment or adjacent properties causing environmental or property damage.
Air emissions such as welding fumes, concrete dust, sewer gas, or combustion engine releases (such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulates).
Spills of wastewater, cleaning chemicals, or debris associated with sewer line installation or maintenance.
During site work, sewer contractors may encounter pipes that are used for things other than sewage such as gas lines or water mains. If those structures have holes in them or are compromised, sewer line contractors may be held responsible for the compromised condition of these structures.
During sewer line installation activities, underground storage tanks may be punctured or piping may be broken open which could result in pollution spills below ground.
Sewer line installation may be conducted in sensitive or protected areas such as wetlands. If the topography or pitch of the area is changed, silt or other pollutants may be discharged into the surrounding environment which could aﬀect surface waters or biota in the area, causing Natural Resource Damages.
Spills may occur while chemicals or equipment are being transported to or from the jobsite, or during loading/unloading. Spills may also occur while waste, debris, sludge, etc. are being transported from the jobsite to a disposal site.

Insurance Claims Involving Sewer Line Installation Contractors

A sewer installation contractor overseeing a sewer rehabilitation project hit a natural gas line with the bucket of a backhoe. This forced evacuation of the immediate area, including a small strip mall. Store owners ﬁled loss of business claims against the contractor, exceeding $75,000. The contractor’s General Liability insurance carrier excluded the claims based on the pollution exclusion.

A regulator ordered that a sewer line contractor cease operations while they were working on a sewer upgrade project. The sewer contractor had been digging sewer trenches that were in an area where the groundwater was shallow. They were pumping the groundwater and getting rid of it in a bay. This was an activity that had not been approved by the local water authority which led to costly ﬁnes against the contractor.

Homeowners sued a township and sewer contractor, alleging that ﬂooding and sewer backups occurred on their properties because of negligent design, construction, maintenance, and operations of the township sewer systems. The homeowners alleged that the sewer contractor cut a drain system and failed to install drainpipes, which led to ﬂooding on their properties.

There have been numerous instances of sewer explosions due to a buildup of sewer gas. These often happen without warning and can vaporize complete sections of roads, shatter windows―and in the worst case scenarios―injure pedestrians in the vicinity of the explosion. In some instances, these explosions may be addressed by sewer contractor General Liability policies, however, recent court decisions have moved gas explosions into the Pollution Liability arena.

During the installation of sewers, a subcontractor improperly tied in piping, resulting in raw sewage leaking into the ground. The raw sewage migrated to the groundwater and contaminated residential wells. Bodily injury and property damage claims were ﬁled against the contractor that hired the subcontractor, exceeding $425,000.

For more information or to discuss a sewer contractor account, please contact us.

Type: Blog