Weyerhaeuser's 4.9 Million Hectares of Saskatchewan Forestlands Achieve Environmental Certification.

Business Editors

PRINCE ALBERT, Saskatchewan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 27, 2003

Weyerhaeuser Company's (NYSE: WY) 4.9 million hectares (12.1 million acres) of Saskatchewan forestlands operations have been certified to meet the Canadian Standards Association's (CSA) rigorous standard for sustainable forest management.

The certification to the CSA Z809 standard covers both the Prince Albert and Pasquia Porcupine Forest Management Areas. Certification follows an independent audit by the Quality Management Institute, a division of the Canadian Standards Association.

CSA Z809 is a tool used by organizations to continually and systematically improve their forest management performance and to ensure field performance is consistent with the goals of sustainable forest management. Use of the standard is voluntary and is intended to complement existing forest policies, laws and regulations.

"This approval is the culmination of public processes that started years earlier. These processes combined the best scientific knowledge available with new research and extensive consultation with various stakeholders -- people living on the lands, special interest groups and members of the public -- as well as Saskatchewan Environment," said John Doucette, strategic coordinator for Saskatchewan Forestlands.

Consultation with stakeholders plays a central role in the CSA certification process, said Doucette.

"The standards our forest practices are measured against have been determined through extensive discussions with various stakeholders and these people will be involved in the ongoing monitoring of our forestry practices," he said.

Certification to CSA Z809 involves regular and rigorous third-party audits. In addition to the initial audit, there are mandatory annual surveillance audits, which include both document and field reviews. A full re-registration audit is required every three years.

The CSA certification follows the spring 2001 certification of Weyerhaeuser's Saskatchewan forestlands operations to the ISO 14001 standard of environmental management systems.

"Weyerhaeuser has a strong commitment to environmental stewardship," said C. William Gaynor, Weyerhaeuser's senior vice president, Canada. "I congratulate our foresters and contractors who deserve full recognition for achieving this certification. This marks another important step in getting all our forestlands certified to internationally recognized standards for sustainable forest management practices."

To date, 10.3 million hectares (25.5 million acres) 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 (NYSE: WY), one of the world's largest integrated forest products companies, was incorporated in 1900. In 2002, sales were Cdn$29.1 billion (US$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. Weyerhaeuser Company Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary, has Exchangeable Shares listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol WYL. Additional information about Weyerhaeuser's businesses, products and practices is available at http://www.weyerhaeuser.com.