Acquisitions and Dispositions

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2012

Acquisitions and Dispositions

Acquisitions and Dispositions

3.     Acquisitions and Dispositions

Acquisitions

Certain of the Company’s acquisitions in prior years included contingent consideration features for which defined goals needed to be met by the acquired business in order for payment of the consideration.  Each quarter until settlement of these contingencies, the Company assessed the likelihood that an acquired business would achieve the goals and the resulting fair value of the contingency.  In accordance with accounting standards for business combinations, these adjustments were recognized in operating income in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income as a component of the Other expenses line item.  The Company’s assessment of these performance goals resulted in the following reductions to previously recognized contingent consideration liabilities:

	Three Months Ended March 31
(In thousands)	2012		2011
Reduction of contingent consideration liabilities	$	—	$	3,966

All contingent consideration liabilities have been settled and there was no recorded contingent consideration liability as of March 31, 2012 or December 31, 2011.

Dispositions - Assets Held-for-Sale

Throughout the past several years and in conjunction with the 2011/2012 Restructuring Program and the Fourth Quarter 2010 Harsco Infrastructure Program, management approved the sale of certain long-lived assets throughout the Company’s operations.  At March 31, 2012 and December 31, 2011, assets held-for-sale of $3.3 million and $7.2 million, respectively were recorded as Other current assets on the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.