Carolina Forestlands Included as Third Party Certifies All Weyerhaeuser Company's U.S. Forests Meet Standard For Sound Forestry.

Business Editors

FEDERAL WAY, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 19, 2003

Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY), one of the world's largest lumber producers, announced today that an independent auditor has certified the company's entire U.S. forest holdings as meeting the Sustainable Forestry Initiative(R) (SFI(R)) standard.

More than seven million acres of forest--an area larger than the state of Maryland--now satisfy rigorous requirements for protecting the environment and ensuring future forest growth.

"Our customers want assurance that using wood products is compatible with good environmental practice," said Richard E. Hanson, executive vice president, Timberlands and International, and chief operating officer. "This certification offers independent verification that our forests are being managed to a high standard."

The Quality Management Institute (QMI) certified this month that 2.9 million acres of Weyerhaeuser forests in Alabama, Arkansas, southern Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma now meet SFI standards. Weyerhaeuser forests in the Carolinas, Georgia, northern Louisiana, Missouri, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas and Washington were previously certified, for a total of 7.4 million acres.

Weyerhaeuser is one of the largest private timberland owners in the Carolinas where it sustainably manages 604,350 acres of forests in North Carolina and 121,650 acres in South Carolina. Certification of the company's Carolina holdings began in 2000 and was completed in 2001.

Weyerhaeuser ownership extends to 44 of North Carolina's 100 counties, with significant acreage in Beaufort, Craven, Jones and Washington counties. The South Carolina ownership extends to 11 counties, with significant ownership in Kershaw, Marlboro and Union counties.

The SFI standard is a comprehensive set of objectives and performance measures which integrate the perpetual growing and harvesting of trees with the protection of wildlife, plants, soil, water and air quality. It is overseen by an independent governing board.

Weyerhaeuser, which started the nation's first tree farm in 1941, has long been a leader in forest stewardship. Some of the forestry practices employed by Weyerhaeuser that meet certification standards include:

-- Replanting - The company plants more than 100 million seedlings a year, generally within the first planting season following harvest. In the Carolinas, the company plants an average of 7.5 million seedlings on company land.

-- Sustaining forest growth - Harvesting at a rate that ensures that more than 97 percent of its land is always growing trees.

-- Protecting endangered species - Harvests are planned to avoid disrupting the breeding activities of sensitive wildlife species such as bald eagles. Weyerhaeuser takes special measures to protect rare, threatened or endangered species such as the Red Hills salamander in Alabama, the gopher tortoise in Louisiana and Mississippi, the American burying beetle in Arkansas and Oklahoma, and the northern spotted owl in Oregon and Washington.

-- Protecting wildlife habitat - Weyerhaeuser leaves snags, logs and scattered live trees for wildlife habitat. It leaves buffer zones of trees along streams to maintain cool stream temperatures, protect fish pools and spawning beds, and reduce siltation.

-- Protecting water quality - Roads are graded and maintained to channel runoff to the forest floor, away from streams. Culverts, cross drains and bridges are built to allow water flow and fish passage and keep sediment out of streams. Exposed road banks are seeded with grasses in areas prone to erosion.

To date, 25.5 million acres (10.3 million hectares) of forest that Weyerhaeuser manages in Canada and the United States have been certified to internationally recognized standards for sustainable forest management practices.

Weyerhaeuser Company, one of the world's largest integrated forest products companies, was incorporated in 1900. In 2002, sales were $18.5 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. Additional information about Weyerhaeuser's businesses, products and practices is available at http://www.weyerhaeuser.com.