Acorn Mines began developing an open pit copper and zinc mine in northern Ontario in April of 2014. As part of the regulatory approvals to develop and to extract minerals from the site, the company committed to restore the mine site. Given the nature of open pit mining, it is not possible to fully restore the site to its original state. Nevertheless, the commitment requires the company to replant the area such that it will be suitable for wildlife and recreation (hiking, paddling, etc.). An independent environmental consultant hired by the mining regulator has estimated that the future site restoration costs will amount to $52 million at the end of the production life of the mine. Management estimates that the mine will begin production in the spring of 2016 and continue for 30 years. Acorn has a March 31 year-end and an incremental borrowing rate of 10%.

Required:
a. Compute the present value of the future site restoration costs as of the spring of 2014.
b. Compute the amount of depreciation expense related to the site restoration costs for the years ending 2015, 2016, and 2017 using the straight-line method.
c. Prepare a schedule showing the interest that will accrue on the site restoration liability each fiscal year from April 2014 to the end of the expected life of the mine.
d. Record the journal entries relating to the future site restoration costs for 2015, 2016, and 2017.