Air Quality

Our air emissions have been steadily declining. Air emissions from Weyerhaeuser facilities come primarily from two sources:

• Industrial boilers that burn fuel to produce electricity and steam and recover chemicals used in the pulping process
• Airborne chemicals released in the production of wood, pulp and paper products

• Air Quality Measures
• Limited Use of Methyl Bromide

Air Quality Measures

Boiler replacements and upgrades at pulp and paper mills have a positive effect on air quality. Between 1999 and 2006, our pulp and paper facilities have reduced their SO₂ emissions by 24 percent and their particulate matter emissions by 74 percent. In our wood products mills, Weyerhaeuser has reduced air emissions of volatile organic compounds by 44 percent since 1999. Also since 1999, our wood products and pulp and paper facilities have reduced air emissions of particulate matter per ton of production by 71 percent and nitrogen oxides by 23 percent. This trend is the result of process modifications and the use of lower-emitting additives as well as pollution-control equipment that has captured or destroyed a significant amount of emissions.

Limited Use of Methyl Bromide

In accordance with the Montreal Protocol, developed countries are phasing out substances that deplete the ozone layer. Methyl bromide is one such substance. The forest products industry uses methyl bromide to kill harmful insects, weeds and disease-causing organisms in tree-seedling nursery beds and to disinfect some products in shipping.

Weyerhaeuser has been actively researching alternatives since 1979, but has yet to find an alternative for producing cost-effective, healthy seedlings and preventing damage from insects and disease. Lacking alternatives, the United States and other countries have requested permission to continue limited use of methyl bromide. The parties to the Montreal Protocol reached a compromise allowing 12 countries—including the United States and Canada—to continue use of limited quantities for agricultural purposes, including tree nurseries. In 2006, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency gave Weyerhaeuser an allocation within this cap.