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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>Oregon Department of Forestry – NEWS RELEASE</span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal><a name="OLE_LINK1"></a><a name="OLE_LINK2"></a><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%'>Harry Merlo honored as Oregon’s Tree Farmer of the Year</span></b><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%'><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal>November 22, 2010<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Contact: Kevin Weeks, (503) 945-7427<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>A long-time leader of the forest products industry has been named Oregon’s Outstanding Tree Farmer of the Year for 2010. The Oregon Tree Farm System on Monday recognized Harry Merlo during a ceremony at the World Forestry Center in Portland.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Merlo owns and manages the 12,000 acre MC Ranch located about twenty miles southwest of La Grande in Union County. About 8,500 acres of the property is forest, managed with a goal of long term recreational use and sustainable forestry. The forest supports a diverse range of wildlife, including salmon habitat in the 4 ½ miles of the Grande Ronde River that flows through the ranch. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Merlo is recognized within Oregon as a philanthropist and an advocate of forestry education. Merlo founded the World Forest Institute in 1989 and continues to be involved with a diverse range of business ventures.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Local chapters of the Oregon Small Woodlands Association select the County Outstanding Tree Farmers of the Year in Oregon. The Oregon winner is selected by a team of professional foresters from the public and private sectors.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>The Oregon Department of Forestry, an active partner of the Oregon Tree Farm System, helps landowners manage their forestlands to ensure that family-owned tree farms achieve economic, environmental and social benefits.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>More information on the Oregon Tree Farm System is available at <a href="http://www.otfs.org">www.otfs.org</a>.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>###<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNoSpacing>Kevin Weeks<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNoSpacing>Public Information Officer<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNoSpacing>Oregon Department of Forestry<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNoSpacing>(503) 945-7427<span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></body></html>