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HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2017
Environmental Remediation Obligations [Abstract] |
HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS | HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS Our operations are subject to extensive international, federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations, in the U.S. and in the other countries in which we operate, including those relating to the discharge of materials into the environment, waste management, remediation, the characteristics and composition of fuels, climate change and greenhouse gases. Our operations are also subject to extensive health, safety and security laws and regulations, including those relating to worker and pipeline safety, pipeline and storage tank integrity and operations security. The principal environmental, health, safety and security risks associated with our operations relate to unauthorized emissions into the air, releases into soil, surface water or groundwater, personal injury and property damage. We have adopted policies, practices, systems and procedures to comply with the laws and regulations, mitigate these risks, limit the liability that could result from such events, prevent material environmental or other damage, ensure the safety of our employees and the public and secure our pipelines, terminals and operations. Compliance with environmental, health, safety and security laws, regulations and related permits increases our capital expenditures and operating expenses, and violation of these laws, regulations or permits could result in significant civil and criminal liabilities, injunctions or other penalties. Most of our pipelines are subject to federal regulation by one or more of the following governmental agencies: the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (the FERC), the Surface Transportation Board (the STB), the Department of Transportation (DOT), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Homeland Security. Additionally, the operations and integrity of the pipelines are subject to the respective state jurisdictions along the routes of the systems. We have adopted policies, practices and procedures to address pollution control, pipeline integrity, operator qualifications, public relations and education, process safety management, risk management planning, hazard communication, emergency response planning, community right-to-know, occupational health and the handling, storage, use and disposal of hazardous materials. Our policies are designed to comply with applicable federal, state and local regulations and to prevent material environmental or other damage, to ensure the safety of our pipelines, our employees, the public and the environment and to limit the financial liability that could result from such events. Future governmental action and regulatory initiatives could necessitate changes to expected operating permits and procedures, additional remedial actions or increased capital expenditures and operating costs. Risks of additional costs and liabilities are inherent within the industry, and there can be no assurances that significant costs and liabilities will not be incurred in the future. Environmental and safety exposures and liabilities are difficult to assess and estimate due to unknown factors such as the timing and extent of remediation, the determination of our liability in proportion to other parties, improvements in cleanup technologies and the extent to which environmental and safety laws and regulations may change in the future. Although environmental and safety costs may have a significant impact on the results of operations for any single period, we believe that such costs will not have a material adverse effect on our financial position. The balance of and changes in the accruals for environmental matters were as follows:
| Year Ended December 31,
| 2017 |  | 2016
| (Thousands of Dollars)
Balance as of the beginning of year | $ | 5,120 |  |  | $ | 7,667 |
Additions to accrual | 3,186 |  |  | 870 |
Payments | (2,675 | ) |  | (3,302 | )
Foreign currency translation | 52 |  |  | (115 | )
Balance as of the end of year | $ | 5,683 |  |  | $ | 5,120 |
Accruals for environmental matters are included in the consolidated balance sheets as follows:
| December 31,
| 2017 |  | 2016
| (Thousands of Dollars)
Accrued liabilities | $ | 3,054 |  |  | $ | 3,281 |
Other long-term liabilities | 2,629 |  |  | 1,839 |
Accruals for environmental matters | $ | 5,683 |  |  | $ | 5,120 |

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- Definition The entire disclosure for environmental loss contingencies, such as presence of hazardous waste, relevant information from reports issued by regulators, and estimated costs to achieve compliance with regulatory requirements. This element may be used for all of an entity's disclosures about environmental loss contingencies. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 410 -SubTopic 30 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/subtopic&trid=2175709 + Details
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- References No definition available. + Details
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