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Commitments and Contingencies
6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2017
Commitments And Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies

NOTE 11. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

In January 2007, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) notified us that we are a potentially responsible party under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) and the Clean Water Act for cleanup of a site known as Avery Landing in northern Idaho. We own a portion of the land at the Avery Landing site, which we acquired in 1980 from the Milwaukee Railroad. The land we own at the site and adjacent properties were contaminated with petroleum as a result of the Milwaukee Railroad's operations at the site prior to 1980. On July 5, 2011, the EPA issued an Action Memorandum for the Avery Landing Site selecting contaminant extraction and off-site disposal as the remedial alternative. On May 23, 2012, we signed a consent order with the EPA pursuant to which we agreed to provide $1.75 million in funding for EPA cleanup on a portion of our property (including the adjacent riverbank owned by the Idaho Department of Lands). The EPA cleanup was completed in October 2012. On April 4, 2013, the EPA issued a unilateral administrative order requiring us to remediate the portion of the Avery Landing site that we own. Our remediation was completed in October 2013. In 2016, the EPA confirmed that Potlatch had completed the cleanup and subsequent monitoring required by the unilateral order. On September 25, 2015, the EPA sent us a letter asserting that the EPA and the Department of Transportation (the current owner of a portion of the adjacent property remediated by the EPA) (DOT) had incurred $9.8 million in unreimbursed response costs associated with the site and that we were liable for such costs. We executed a tolling agreement with the EPA and DOT suspending the statute of limitations on the claim until September 2016 in order to facilitate negotiations of a final settlement and release. In September, the parties agreed to extend the tolling agreement through October 6, 2016. The tolling agreement was further extended through February 22, 2017; in January 2017, the tolling agreement was extended through May 22, 2017; and in May 2017 the tolling agreement was extended through September 22, 2017. Settlement negotiations continue. If settlement efforts prove to be unsuccessful, we believe we have meritorious defenses to this claim and we intend to defend ourselves vigorously. We accrued $0.2 million for this matter in the first quarter of 2016 and an additional $0.8 million for this matter in the second quarter of 2016. It is reasonably possible that our liability may exceed our accrual by up to approximately $2 million. We have reserved all of our rights to seek reimbursement for the costs of remediation from all parties potentially responsible.