NEWS RELEASE

Tolko & Footner to sign creative Forest Management Agreement

High Level, Alberta - An innovative and progressive Forest Management Agreement (FMA) was recently approved by the province of Alberta and the Minister of Sustainable Resource Development. The Agreement confirms the intention of Footner Forest Products Ltd. and Tolko Industries Ltd. to integrated management of coniferous and deciduous species in a shared, area-based tenure. The jointly managed FMA will support in part the oriented strandboard and sawmill operations of the two partners.

Tom Hoffman, Tolko’s Woodlands Manager at High Level Lumber Division, says the joint FMA makes sense for both partners. "By jointly managing the landbase, we are able to take advantage of the knowledge and resources of both companies. This is the second joint FMA Tolko has entered into in Alberta and we look forward to many positive forest management benefits as a result of these partnerships."

Barry Gladders, Woodlands Manager for Footner agrees. "Coordinated planning and operations will allow the companies the opportunity to better balance the environmental, social and economic values on the joint FMA. It will, however, take a cooperative effort by all stakeholders to truly recognize the potential benefits to the forest in the management approach the companies are proposing."

In conjunction with the joint FMA, Tolko, Footner and other stakeholders have worked cooperatively in creating a Detailed Forest Management Plan (DFMP) for the FMA. The DFMP was formally submitted to the Minister of Sustainable Resource Development and outlines the preferred management strategy the companies are proposing for the sustainable forest management of the joint FMA. The DFMP also outlines the existing forest inventory, expected growth rates, silviculture programs, First Nations involvement and environmental programs. Tom Hoffman says "the plan oultines the intent of both companies to utilize the best science available in reaching decisions made to keep pace with the evolving nature of the forest, and economic and societal desires of Albertans".

The official signing of the joint FMA is currently in progress and will be completed in late August.

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For more information:
Tom Hoffman
Tolko Industries Ltd.
Phone: 780-926-3781

Barry Gladders
Footner Forest Products
Phone: 780-841-3629

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