VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES - Additional Information (Details) (USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Proceeds of investments (payments of liabilities) held by special purpose entities	$ 13	$ 0	$ 0
Interest expense	348	384	452
Deferred tax liability	1,002	1,073
The number of residential lots under option to purchase	59,000
Forest Products
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Restricted financial investments	805	916
Long-term notes	681	776
Forest Products | Special Purpose Entities
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Interest expense	32	31	32
Interest income	34	34	34
Number of qualifying special purpose entities	4
Net equity in SPEs	125
Deferred tax liability	240
Forest Products | Buyer-sponsored SPEs
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Proceeds of investments (payments of liabilities) held by special purpose entities	110
Weighted average interest rate	3.80%
Restricted financial investments	799	909
Forest Products | Buyer-sponsored SPEs | Restricted bank financial instruments due in 2013
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Restricted financial investments	184
Investment, maturity date	Dec. 31, 2013
Forest Products | Buyer-sponsored SPEs | Restricted bank financial instruments due in 2019
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Restricted financial investments	253
Investment, maturity date	Dec. 31, 2019
Forest Products | Buyer-sponsored SPEs | Restricted bank financial instruments due in 2020
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Restricted financial investments	362
Investment, maturity date	Dec. 31, 2020
Forest Products | Monetization SPEs
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Proceeds of investments (payments of liabilities) held by special purpose entities	(97)
Weighted average interest rate	4.30%	4.20%
Long-term notes	672	767
Forest Products | Monetization SPEs | Long-term debt due in 2013
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Debt, maturity date	Dec. 31, 2013
Long-term notes	161
Forest Products | Monetization SPEs | Long-term debt due in 2019
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Debt, maturity date	Dec. 31, 2019
Long-term notes	209
Forest Products | Monetization SPEs | Long-term debt due in 2020
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Debt, maturity date	Dec. 31, 2020
Long-term notes	$ 302
Real Estate | Primary Beneficiary
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
The number of residential lots under option to purchase	1,200	400