Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Text Block] | 5 . Commitments and Contingencies Portland Harbor Superfund On December 1, 2000, a section of the lower Willamette River known as the Portland Harbor Site was included on the National Priorities List at the request of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (the “EPA”). While the Company’s Portland, Oregon manufacturing facility does not border the Willamette River, an outfall from the facility’s stormwater system drains into a neighboring property’s privately owned stormwater system and slip. Since the listing of the site, the Company was notified by the EPA and the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (“ODEQ”) of potential liability under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (“CERCLA”). In 2008, the Company was asked to file information disclosure reports with the EPA (CERCLA 104 (e) information request). A remedial investigation and feasibility study (“RI/FS”) of the Portland Harbor Site has been directed by a group of 14 potentially responsible parties known as the Lower Willamette Group (the “LWG”) under agreement with the EPA. The remedial investigation report was finalized in February 2016. The draft feasibility study (“FS”) was submitted by the LWG to the EPA in March 2012. A revised draft FS submitted in 2015 identifies six possible remedial alternatives which range in estimated cost from approximately $790 million to $2.5 billion and estimates it will take up to 18 years to implement the remedial work, depending on the selected alternative. The report does not determine who is responsible for the costs of cleanup or how the cleanup costs will be allocated among the potentially responsible parties. As of the date of this filing, the revised FS is pending approval of the EPA. In 2001, groundwater containing elevated volatile organic compounds (“VOCs”) was identified in one localized area of leased property adjacent to the Portland facility furthest from the river. Assessment work was conducted in 2002 and 2003 to further characterize the groundwater. In February 2005, the Company entered into a Voluntary Agreement for Remedial Investigation and Source Control Measures (the “Agreement”) with ODEQ. The Company performed RI work required under the Agreement and submitted a draft RI/Source Control Evaluation Report (“SCE”) in December 2005, a revised draft RI/SCE Report in January 2014, and a further revised RI/SCE Report in March 2015. In May 2015, and subsequently in August and October 2015, the Company received the EPA’s and ODEQ’s comments, respectively, requesting additional information and modifications to the revised RI/SCE Report, including the request to conduct additional groundwater sampling. The Company provided a Supplemental Groundwater Sampling Work Plan (“proposed Work Plan”) in December 2015. The DEQ and EPA provided comments to the proposed Work Plan in January 2016 and additional requests in February 2016. The Company expects to provide a Final Supplemental Groundwater Sampling Work Plan in the second quarter of 2016. Concurrent with the activities of the EPA and ODEQ, the Portland Harbor Natural Resources Trustee Council (“Trustees”) sent some or all of the same parties, including the Company, a notice of intent to perform a Natural Resource Damage Assessment (“NRDA”) for the Portland Harbor Site to determine the nature and extent of natural resource damages under CERCLA section 107. The Trustees for the Portland Harbor Site consist of representatives from several Northwest Indian Tribes, three federal agencies and one state agency. The Trustees act independently of the EPA and ODEQ. The Trustees have encouraged potentially responsible parties to voluntarily participate in the funding of their injury assessments and several of those parties have agreed to do so. In June 2014, the Company agreed to participate in the injury assessment process, which included funding $0.4 million of the assessment; of this amount, $0.2 million was paid in July 2014 and the remainder was paid in January 2015. The Company has not assumed any additional payment obligations or liabilities with the participation with the NRDA. The Company’s potential liability is a portion of the costs of the remedy the EPA will select for the entire Portland Harbor Superfund Site. The cost of that remedy is expected to be allocated among more than 100 potentially responsible parties. Because of the large number of responsible parties and the variability in the range of remediation alternatives, the Company is unable to estimate an amount or an amount within a range of costs for its obligation with respect to the Portland Harbor Site matters, and no further adjustment to the consolidated financial statements has been recorded as of the date of this filing. The Company has insurance policies for defense costs, as well as indemnification policies it believes will provide reimbursement for any share of the remediation assessed. However, the Company can provide no assurance that those policies will cover all of the costs which the Company may incur. In December 2014, a federal district court approved settlements between the Company and two of its insurance carriers. The Company released its interests in the related insurance policies, and received $2.6 million in January 2015 for reimbursement of past indemnification and defense costs incurred by the Company associated with the Portland Harbor Site, substantially all of which reduced cost of sales in 2014. Notwithstanding these settlements, the Company continues to have insurance coverage for indemnification and defense costs related to the Portland Harbor Site as described above. Houston Environmental Issue In connection with the Company’s sale of its oil country tubular goods (“OCTG”) business, a Limited Phase II Environmental Site Assessment was conducted at the Houston, Texas plant and completed in March 2014, which revealed the presence of VOCs in the groundwater and certain metals in the soil. In June 2014, the Company was accepted into the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (“TCEQ”) Voluntary Cleanup Program (“VCP”) to address these issues and obtain a Certificate of Completion from TCEQ. The cost of any potential assessment and cleanup will not be covered by insurance. However, any costs incurred will be reimbursed by the purchaser of the OCTG business if the purchaser exercises its option to purchase the property under certain circumstances after the Certificate of Completion is obtained. The proposed remediation approach includes a municipal ordinance to prevent consumption of shallow groundwater from beneath the property, thereby eliminating the need for more costly remediation measures. In February 2016, the Company submitted an application to the City of Houston under the municipal ordinance, and is currently in the process of satisfying the requirements of the City and TCEQ to obtain approval of the application. While the final remediation approach has not yet been determined, the Company has completed an initial assessment and currently estimates that the future costs associated with the VCP will be between $0.2 million and $2.2 million. At March 31, 2016, the Company has a $0.3 million accrual for remediation costs based on the low-end estimate of future costs using a probability-weighted analysis of remediation approaches, and estimates that completion of the VCP process will occur between the second quarter of 2017 and the first quarter of 2019. All Sites The Company operates its facilities under numerous governmental permits and licenses relating to air emissions, storm water run-off, and other environmental matters. The Company’s operations are also governed by many other laws and regulations, including those relating to workplace safety and worker health, principally the Occupational Safety and Health Act and regulations there under which, among other requirements, establish noise and dust standards. The Company believes it is in material compliance with its permits and licenses and these laws and regulations, and the Company does not believe that future compliance with such laws and regulations will have a material adverse effect on its financial position, results of operations or cash flows. From time to time, the Company is involved in litigation relating to claims arising out of its operations in the normal course of its business. The Company maintains insurance coverage against potential claims in amounts that are believed to be adequate. To the extent that insurance does not cover legal, defense, and indemnification costs associated with a loss contingency, such costs will be expensed as incurred. The Company believes that it is not presently a party to any other litigation, the outcome of which would have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Guarantees The Company has entered into certain stand-by letters of credit that total $2.0 million at March 31, 2016. The stand-by letters of credit relate to workers’ compensation insurance. |