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Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

ASSET RETIREMENT OBLIGATIONS (Notes)

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ASSET RETIREMENT OBLIGATIONS (Notes)
 3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2021
Asset Retirement Obligation [Abstract] Ìý
ASSET RETIREMENT OBLIGATIONS
NOTE 12 - ASSET RETIREMENT OBLIGATIONS
The following is a summary of our asset retirement obligations:
(In Millions)
March 31,
2021		 December 31,
2020
Asset retirement obligations1
$ 310Ìý $ 342Ìý
Less: current portion 12Ìý 7Ìý
Long-term asset retirement obligations $ 298Ìý $ 335Ìý
1 Includes $158 million and $190 million related to our active operations as of MarchÌý31, 2021 and DecemberÌý31, 2020, respectively.
The accrued closure obligation provides for contractual and legal obligations related to our indefinitely idled and closed operations and for the eventual closure of our active operations. The closure date for each of our active mine sites was determined based on the exhaustion date of the remaining mineral reserves and the amortization of the related asset and accretion of the liability is recognized over the estimated mine lives. The closure date and expected timing of the capital requirements to meet our obligations for our indefinitely idled or closed mines is determined based on the unique circumstances of each property. For indefinitely idled or closed mines, the accretion of the liability is recognized over the anticipated timing of remediation. As the majority of our asset retirement obligations at our steelmaking operations have indeterminate settlement dates, asset retirement obligations have been recorded at present values using estimated ranges of the economic lives of the underlying assets.
The following is a roll forward of our asset retirement obligation liability:
(In Millions)
2021 2020
Asset retirement obligation as of January 1 $ 342Ìý $ 165Ìý
Increase (decrease) from Acquisitions (34) 14Ìý
Accretion expense 3Ìý 2Ìý
Remediation payments (1) —Ìý
Asset retirement obligation as of March 31 $ 310Ìý $ 181Ìý
The decrease from Acquisitions for the three months ended March 31, 2021, relates to measurement period adjustments as a result of the preliminary purchase price allocation of the AM USA Transaction.