Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2011

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

13. Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

        The Partnership's policy is to evaluate whether there has been an impairment in the value of long-lived assets when certain events have taken place that indicate that the remaining balance may not be recoverable. The Partnership evaluates the carrying value of its property, plant and equipment and intangibles on a segment level and at lower levels where cash flows for specific assets can be identified.

        An analysis completed during 2009 indicated that the future estimated operating cash flows could be at or below zero for Wirth Gathering. Wirth Gathering's expected future cash flows were adversely impacted by a significant reduction to the primary producer's drilling plan disclosed in the second quarter of 2009, as well as increased operating expenses resulting from an agreement reached in May 2009 with the non-controlling partner. The Partnership used the income approach for determining the assets' fair value and recognized an impairment of long-lived assets of approximately $5.9 million for year ended December 31, 2009. After considering the impact of the non-controlling interest, the impairment increased the net loss attributable to the Partnership for the year ended December 31, 2009 by approximately $2.9 million, before provision for income tax expense.