None The Nature Conservancy in Washington Press Releases Search All Press Releases Leslie Brown, Nature Conservancy, 206-343-4345, leslie_brown@tnc.org; or Frank Mendizabal, Weyerhaeuser, 253-924-3357, frank.mendizabal@weyerhaeuser.com

Weyerhaeuser pledges $1 million gift to Nature Conservancy

Funds will support forest biodiversity projects in the Northwest and Southeast

Seattle, WA—July 31, 2006—In their largest combined gift to a U.S.-based conservation organization, Weyerhaeuser Company and the Weyerhaeuser Company Foundation have pledged $1 million to The Nature Conservancy, offering to support a range of forest conservation and biodiversity projects in both the Northwest and the Southeast, the Conservancy announced today.

The contributions will include both cash and interests in forest  land. Weyerhaeuser is focusing on projects in the Northwest and the Southeast because the paper and forest products company owns or leases 6.4 million acres of managed forests in those two regions. In Washington, it manages 1.1 million acres.

“This is a significant gift from one of our nation’s largest natural resources companies,” said David Weekes, director of the Conservancy’s Washington state chapter. “We applaud the corporate leadership that this generous donation represents. A gift of this magnitude can make a meaningful difference in protecting and enhancing our magnificent forested landscapes.”

“Our partnership with the Conservancy extends back three decades and gives us great confidence in the value of working together to understand biodiversity in the managed forest and protect places with special ecological value,” said Cassie Phillips, Weyerhaeuser vice president, sustainable forests and products.

Over the next five years, Weyerhaeuser and the Conservancy will select projects in several states, including Washington, Oregon, North Carolina, Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, Louisiana and Oklahoma. The first round of projects will be selected this fall. The company and the organization have also agreed to work collaboratively to improve their understanding of managed forests and biodiversity conservation.

The Weyerhaeuser Company Foundation works to improve the quality of life in communities where Weyerhaeuser has a presence and increase understanding of the importance and sustainability of forests and products. Begun in 1948, the Foundation has contributed more than $183 million to non-profit organizations.

Weyerhaeuser Company, one of the world’s largest integrated forest products companies, was incorporated in 1900. In 2005, sales were $22.6 billion. It has offices or operations in 18 countries, with customers worldwide. Weyerhaeuser is principally engaged in the growing and harvesting of timber; the manufacture, distribution and sale of forest products; and real estate construction, development and related activities. All of the company’s U.S. forests are certified under the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, a comprehensive system of principles, objectives and performance measures that combines the perpetual growing and harvesting of trees with long-term protection of wildlife, plants, soil and water quality.

The Nature Conservancy is a private, international, non-profit organization that preserves plants, animals and natural communities representing the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To date, the Conservancy and its nearly one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 12 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 80 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. In Washington, the Conservancy and its nearly 30,000 members have helped to protect more than 500,000 acres.