ACCOUNTING CHANGES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

Accounting Changes and Error Corrections [Abstract]

Schedule of Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Standard	Description	Effect on the Financial Statements or Other Significant Matters
Accounting standards adopted effective January 1, 2019
ASU No. 2016-02, as amended through March 2019: Leases (Topic 842)	Requires that a lessee recognize at the commencement date: a lease liability, which is the obligation of the lessee to make lease payments arising from a lease, measured on a discounted basis; and a right-of-use asset, which is an asset that represents the lessee’s right to use, or control the use of, a specified asset for the lease term.	We adopted the guidance using the prospective optional transition method effective January 1, 2019, which allowed us to elect not to restate comparative periods and, if applicable, to recognize the effects of applying this guidance as a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of January 1, 2019. We did not recognize a cumulative effect adjustment to retained earnings upon implementation. Upon adopting this guidance, we recognized a right-of-use asset and lease liability for leases classified as operating leases with a term in excess of 12 months in our consolidated balance sheet. We also prospectively reclassified landfill operating lease payments, along with related accumulated depreciation, that were previously capitalized as property, plant and equipment to operating lease right-of-use assets. Accordingly, the related cash outlays, which were historically considered cash flows from investing activities, were prospectively reclassified as cash flows from operating activities in accordance with Topic 842. With the assistance of third-party resources, we designed internal controls over the adoption of this guidance and implemented a third-party enterprise lease management software solution. In conjunction with the implementation, we modified our lease policy and internal business processes to effectively manage and account for leases, and to support recognition and disclosure requirements under the new standard. The adoption of this guidance did not have a material impact on the accounting for our finance leases. This guidance required additional disclosure over leases in order to comply with the new lease standard. See Note 8, Leases for additional disclosure.

A table providing a brief description of recent ASUs to the ASC issued by the FASB that are pending adoption and deemed to have a possible material impact on our consolidated financial statements based on current account balances and activity follows:

Standard	Description	Effect on the Financial Statements or Other Significant Matters
Accounting standards issued pending adoption
ASU No. 2019-12: Income Taxes (Topic 740)	Reduces the complexity over accounting for income taxes by removing certain exceptions and amending guidance to improve consistent application of accounting over income taxes.	We are currently assessing the provisions of this guidance to determine whether or not its adoption will have an impact on our consolidated financial statements and related disclosures. This guidance is effective January 1, 2021 with early adoption permitted.
ASU No. 2017-04: Intangibles - Goodwill and Other (Topic 350)	Requires that when an entity is performing its annual, or interim, goodwill impairment test, it should compare the fair value of the reporting unit with its carrying amount when calculating its impairment charge, noting that the loss recognized should not exceed the total amount of goodwill allocated to that reporting unit. Additionally, if applicable, an entity should consider income tax effects from any tax-deductible goodwill on the carrying amount of the reporting unit when calculating its impairment charge.	As of December 31, 2019, we did not record a goodwill impairment charge related to our annual goodwill impairment test because at that time the fair value of each reporting unit exceeded its respective carrying value. Upon adoption, if the carrying value of any of these reporting units exceeds the fair value when we perform a goodwill impairment test, we would record an impairment charge equal to the amount by which the carrying value exceeds its fair value. We adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2020 and we do not expect our adoption of this guidance to have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.
ASU No. 2016-13: Financial Instrument Credit Losses (Topic 326)	Requires that an entity measures all of its expected credit losses for financial assets held based on historical experience, current conditions, and reasonable and supportable forecasts.	This guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, including interim periods within that fiscal year. We adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2020 using the required modified-retrospective approach. We are currently assessing the provisions of this guidance, and we do not expect our adoption of this standard to have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements or to result in a material cumulative effect adjustment to retained earnings as of January 1, 2020.