Aquatic Cellulose Appoints William Stephaniuk Chief Operating Officer.

Business Editors

VERNON, British Columbia--Feb. 14, 2002--The Board of Directors of Aquatic Cellulose (OTCBB:AQCI) is pleased to announce the appointment of William Stephaniuk as Chief Operating Officer effective immediately.

Mr. Stephaniuk will lead AQCI's day-to-day activities around the world. He will be based in the Vernon, BC office and will report directly to the CEO.

"Bill is a strong addition to our team," said Gary Ackles, President and CEO of Aquatic Cellulose. "He is an experienced and a multi-talented executive with a proven track record in all facets of the forest industry. His strong personal presence, commitment to our growth, and his years of experience in corporate governance, strategic management and international project development will be valuable assets to AQCI as we further execute on our business strategy. Bill brings to AQCI a wealth of knowledge, ingenuity and energy, and he complements our executive team."

Stephaniuk brings nearly 30 years of hands-on experience in the forest industry to Aquatic Cellulose, from senior operational management positions in logging, sawmilling and pulp and paper, to corporate management positions in international projects. Prior to joining AQCI, Stephaniuk was a regional executive at MacMillan Bloedel in Canada and later its parent company, Weyerhaeuser. A graduate of York University and the University of Toronto, Stephaniuk has a special expertise in synergizing the business talents of individuals and teams.

"AQCI is poised to take advantage of our leading position in the underwater forest industry," said Stephaniuk. "Our submerged standing resource and robotic timber harvesting technology offer competitive advantages that, when combined with our experiences at Tucurui, will serve our core business and leverage our growth into new markets. My first focus will be on building the downstream infrastructures at our ECOMAB subsidiary in Brazil, and then establishing other projects for AQCI throughout the world. I look forward to the challenge."

Aquatic Cellulose International Corp. (AQCI) is a leading producer of underwater harvested hardwoods. The company operates in Brazil using a patented robotic-based underwater timber harvesting system. The Aquatic Timber Harvester (ATH) locates, cuts, and retrieves submerged timber with greater efficiency and safety than diver-based methods. AQCI specializes in the recovery and processing of this once lost resource to offer the finest tropical hardwood products without impacting living forests.

This press release contains statements that constitute forward statements, as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause or contribute to such differences include, among other things, the Company's dependence on one customer, seasonality of the Company's retrieval business and risk of future losses from operations. Other risks and uncertainties include changes in business conditions and the economy in general, changes in governmental regulations, unforeseen litigation and other risk factors identified. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements for revisions or changes after the date of this press release.

The NASD OTC has neither approved nor disapproved of the information contained herein.