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Commitments and Contingencies
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2019
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies Commitments and Contingencies
Litigation
In the ordinary conduct of our business, we are from time to time subject to lawsuits, investigations and claims, including environmental claims and employee-related matters. Although we cannot predict with certainty the ultimate resolution of lawsuits, investigations and claims asserted against us, including civil penalties or other enforcement actions, we do not believe that any currently pending legal proceeding or proceedings to which we are a party will have a material adverse effect on our financial statements. See "Crude Oil and Other Releases" below for discussion of an enforcement action.
Environmental, Health and Safety
We are subject to extensive federal, state and local environmental and safety laws and regulations enforced by various agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency (the "EPA"), the United States Department of Transportation, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, as well as numerous state, regional and local environmental, safety and pipeline agencies. These laws and regulations govern the discharge of materials into the environment, waste management practices and pollution prevention measures, as well as the safe operation of our pipelines and the safety of our workers and the public. Numerous permits or other authorizations are required under these laws and regulations for the operation of our terminals, pipelines, saltwells, trucks and related operations, and may be subject to revocation, modification and renewal. See "Crude Oil and Other Releases" below for discussion of an enforcement action.
These laws and permits raise potential exposure to future claims and lawsuits involving environmental and safety matters, which could include soil and water contamination, air pollution, personal injury and property damage allegedly caused by substances which we handled, used, released or disposed of, transported, or that relate to pre-existing conditions for which we have assumed responsibility. We believe that our current operations are in substantial compliance with existing environmental and safety requirements. However, there have been and we expect that there will continue to be ongoing discussions about environmental and safety matters between us and federal and state authorities, including notices of violations, citations and other enforcement actions, some of which have resulted or may result in changes to operating procedures and in capital expenditures. While it is often difficult to quantify future environmental or safety related expenditures, we anticipate that continuing capital investments and changes in operating procedures will be required to comply with existing and new requirements, as well as evolving interpretations and more strict enforcement of existing laws and regulations.
Releases of hydrocarbons or hazardous substances into the environment could, to the extent the event is not insured, or is not a reimbursable event under the Omnibus Agreement, subject us to substantial expenses, including costs to respond to, contain and remediate a release, to comply with applicable laws and regulations and to resolve claims by third parties for personal injury, property damage or natural resources damages.
Crude Oil and Other Releases
We have experienced several crude oil and other releases involving our assets, including five releases that occurred in 2019 and six releases that occurred in 2018. Cleanup operations and site maintenance and remediation efforts on these and other releases are at various stages of completion. The majority of the remediation efforts for these releases have been substantially completed or have received regulatory closure. Boom maintenance and confirmatory sampling is currently underway at some sites. We expect regulatory closure by the end of 2019 for some release sites that have not yet received it, with closure on a few remaining sites occurring in 2020.
Many of the releases have occurred on our SALA Gathering System. During the nine months ended September 30, 2019, we decommissioned certain sections of the SALA Gathering System in an effort to improve the safety and integrity of the system. The decommissioning of these sections was completed in August 2019. The project did not have a material effect on the operational capabilities of the system.
Regulatory authorities could require additional remediation based on the results of our remediation efforts. We may incur additional expenses as a result of further scrutiny by regulatory authorities and continued compliance with laws and regulations to which our assets are subject. As of September 30, 2019, we have accrued $0.4 million for remediation and other such matters related to these releases, which excludes amounts payable discussed below for the release of crude oil from a pumping facility at our Magnolia Station near the El Dorado Refinery (the "Magnolia Release").
On October 3, 2019, a release of diesel fuel involving one of our pipelines occurred near Sulphur Springs, Texas (the "Sulphur Springs Release"). Cleanup operations and site maintenance and remediation on this release are expected to be completed by the end of the year. We currently estimate the maintenance and remediation efforts to cost between $4.0 million and $6.0 million, excluding any fines or penalties assessed by regulatory agencies. We anticipate that we will incur fines or penalties but we cannot currently estimate those costs. No accrual is recorded for the Sulphur Springs Release as of September 30, 2019, as the release occurred subsequent to that date. We are evaluating whether there may be potential recoveries or indemnification of the costs incurred for the Sulphur Springs Release.
Expenses incurred for the remediation of these crude oil and other releases are included in operating expenses in our condensed consolidated statements of income and comprehensive income and the majority are subsequently reimbursed by Delek Holdings pursuant to the terms of the Omnibus Agreement. Reimbursements are recorded as a reduction to operating expense. We do not believe the total costs associated with these events, whether alone or in the aggregate, including any fines or penalties and net of available insurance, indemnification or reimbursement, will have a material adverse effect upon our business, financial condition or results of operations as we are generally reimbursed by Delek Holdings for such costs.
During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019, we recorded a nominal amount and $0.3 million of expenses, respectively, and $0.2 million and $0.3 million of expenses during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, which is net of total reimbursable costs from Delek Holdings pursuant to the terms of the Omnibus Agreement. Reimbursable costs amounted to $0.5 million and $4.6 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019, respectively, and $1.0 million and $8.0 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, respectively, to cover the costs of asset failures.
The United States Department of Justice (the "DOJ"), on behalf of the EPA, and the state of Arkansas, on behalf of the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality, have been pursuing an enforcement action against the Partnership with regard to potential violations of the Clean Water Act and certain state laws arising from the Magnolia Release since June 2015. On July 13, 2018, the DOJ and the State of Arkansas filed a civil action against two of the Partnership's wholly-owned subsidiaries, Delek Logistics Operating, LLC and SALA Gathering Systems LLC, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas.
In December 2018, the Partnership, the United States and the state of Arkansas reached an agreement to settle the claims related to the Magnolia Release for $2.2 million and the claims against the Partnership were resolved and an additional demand for a compliance audit at the Magnolia terminal was abandoned in exchange for payment of monetary penalties and other relief. In July 2019, we signed and submitted to the DOJ, a consent decree (the "Magnolia Consent Decree") to settle the release, and on August 30, 2019, the Magnolia Consent Decree was lodged with the Court.  We expect the Magnolia Consent Decree to be finalized and to settle the payable in the fourth quarter of 2019. As of September 30, 2019, $2.2 million is recorded in accounts payable in our condensed consolidated balance sheet for the Magnolia Release.
Letters of Credit
As of September 30, 2019, we had no letters of credit in place.