WEYERHAEUSER COMPANY FOUNDATION GRANT BOOSTS AGENDA’S WORKING LANDS INITIATIVE

Seattle, May 1, 2008 – A $250,000 grant to support the Working Lands Initiative of The Cascade Agenda was announced today by the Weyerhaeuser Company Foundation and the Cascade Land Conservancy, host organization of The Agenda.

The grant comes as the Conservancy moves into the public phase of a $20 million Cascade Agenda Capital Campaign to implement the goals and strategies of The Agenda.  The Cascade Agenda, launched in May 2005, is a 100-year visionary regional program to conserve 1.3 million acres of working forests and farmlands and revitalize cities and towns throughout the region.

About $15 million has been raised since the campaign began in March 2007 from foundations, individuals, government and business.
Since 1948, the Weyerhaeuser Company Foundation has played an integral role in the philanthropic efforts of the Weyerhaeuser Company.

Weyerhaeuser made the company's first charitable contribution in 1903. The mission of the Weyerhaeuser Company Foundation is to release the potential in people to strengthen our communities and advance sustainability.  Since 1948, the Foundation has directed more than $195 million to the communities where Weyerhaeuser employees work, live and play. Nationwide, the Foundation's annual philanthropic budget totals $9 million.

“We have sharpened our philanthropic focus to more closely align with the company's direction and help solve important problems for people and the planet,” said Ernesta Ballard, Weyerhaeuser senior vice president, Corporate Affairs “We are focused on making a substantial difference in sustainable natural resources in line with the company’s long-standing position in the region.”

“Conserving working lands is one of the key strategies of The Cascade Agenda,” said Gene Duvernoy, President of the Cascade Land Conservancy.  “Only by staying within the footprint we have already occupied and conserving the rest can we hope to achieve landscape scale conservation.”

Through the Cascade Agenda Working Lands Initiative, Cascade Land Conservancy is advancing innovative, market-based conservation strategies that will ultimately protect 1.3 million acres of working farms and forests, keep commercial forestry and farming sustainable and economically viable and conserve the Puget Sound region’s vital working land base to ensure a strong economy and a legacy for future generations.

Examples of Cascade Agenda strategies to protect working lands include:

•    Creating new public and private financing mechanisms, such as Public Conservation Authorities and Community Forest Bonds, to keep farming and forestry financially viable;

•    Exploring new revenue streams for foresters and farmers such as environmental mitigation, biosolids application, carbon sequestration, compensation for water recharge services, recreation fees and more;

•    Partnering with developers to create Conservation Villages – compact, green-built neighborhoods of 50-200 homes with common open space located in rural areas; and

•    Developing a regional marketplace for Transfer of Development Rights, allowing landowners to realize real estate appreciation while fostering growth in already developed areas.

“Conservation is at the heart of what we do,” said Maryanne Tagney Jones, Chair, CLC Board of Directors. “This grant will be invaluable in advancing the conservation goals of the Cascade Agenda and in maintaining the quality of life we all enjoy here so much.”

“Volunteer employees on our local Foundation committee review each Foundation grant application,” said Karen Johnson, president, Weyerhaeuser Company Foundation. “We are pleased to be able to partner with organizations such as the Cascade Land Conservancy on sustainable regional programs like The Cascade Agenda as a part of Weyerhaeuser’s commitment to being a good corporate citizen.”