Closing US Mills, Moving Overseas |
Profile of the Boise Cascade Corporation |
by George Draffan |
|
Table of Contents History Board of Directors Financial Information Shareholders Corporate and Public Timber Supplies Operations and Facilities Labor Issues Subsidies Environmental Record Political Activities Shareholder Resolutions Legal Proceedings |
Boise Announces Sale of Paper, Building Products, and Timberland Assets (July 26, 2004) |
Corporate headquarters: 208-384-6161 www.bc.com |
Boise Cascade Transforms. Timber Mart-South Market Newsletter, Third Quarter 2004. |
The corporation now known as Boise Cascade was incorporated as Boise Payette by Frederick Weyerhaeuser and associates in 1913. Between 1913 and 1947, Boise Payette received at least 172,000 acres of the public lands granted to the Northern Pacific Railroad. More information on the railroad land grants can be found in the book Railroads and Clearcuts and from the Railroads and Clearcuts Campaign (www.landgrant.org). Boise Payette and Cascade Lumber (Yakima, Washington) were merged in 1957 into Boise Cascade.
Boise Cascade, Potlatch, and Weyerhaeuser were interlocked from the time of their incorporation by Weyerhaeuser and associates in the early 1900s until the 1980s, through members of the Bell, Clapp, Jewett, Musser, and Weyerhaeuser families. Boise Cascade, Great Northern Railroad, and Weyerhaeuser were interlocked from the 1910s to 1940s, through Frederick and F.E. Weyerhaeuser. Boise Cascade, Northern Pacific Railroad, and Potlatch were interlocked from 1947 to 1955 by G.F. Jewett. The connection with the land grant companies continued into the 1990s, through Northern Pacific's corporate descendants Burlington Northern Railroad and Burlington Resources, whose spin-offs include Plum Creek Timber. Boise Cascade, Burlington Northern Railroad, and Burlington Resources were interlocked from 1981 to 1992, by J.B. Parrish. Former chairman and CEO of Union Pacific William Cook was a Boise Cascade director in the 1990s.
Over the years Boise Cascade has tried diversifying into engineering, construction, and real estate, but has retrenched to concentrate on producing and distributing paper and other office supplies, and today gets 70 percent of its revenues and 90 percent of its profits from office products and paper (see financial section below).
Warren F. Bryant |
Chairman of the board, president, and chief executive officer of Longs Drug Stores. |
Philip J. Carroll |
Chairman and CEO of Fluor Corporation; director of Vulcan Materials. Former president and chief executive officer of Shell Oil Company 1993-1998. |
Claire S. Farley |
CEO of Trade-Ranger Inc., a global Internet-based marketplace dedicated to buying and selling materials and services used by the energy industry. Former CEO of Intelligent Diagnostics (artificial intelligence software used to diagnose medical conditions) from 1999 to 2000. Former corporate officer for Texaco from 1997 to 1999, having been with the company since 1981. |
Rakesh Ganwal |
Pres. and CEO of U.S. Airways Group. Former vice president of Air France from 1994 to 1996. |
Richard R. Goodmanson |
Vice president and chief operating officer of DuPont. Former president and CEO of America West Airlines 1996 to 1999. Former vice president of Frito-Lay 1992 to 1996. |
Edward Hagenlocker |
Director of Air Products and Chemicals, AmeriSource Corporation, and Nanophase Technologies. Former vice chairman of Ford Motor. Former chairman of Visteon Automotive Systems. |
George J. Harad Chairman, CEO, and director. |
Executive officer of Boise Cascade since 1982; became director and president of Boise Cascade in 1991; CEO in 1994; chairman in 1995. |
Francesca Ruiz de Luzuriaga |
Independent business development consultant. Former executive with Mattel |
Donald S. Macdonald |
Director of Aber Diamond, Alberta Energy, Boltons Capital, Sun Life Financial Services of Canada, and TransCanada Pipelines. Senior advisor to UBS Bunting Warburg, a business group of UBS AG, one of the leading global financial services firms. Former counsel to Toronto law firm McCarthy Tétrault 1991-2000. Former member Canadian House of Commons, chairman Royal Commission on the Economic Union and Development Prospects for Canada, Canadian High Commissioner to Great Britain and Northern Ireland. |
Gary G. Michael |
Chairman and CEO of Albertson's. Director of Questar. Former chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. |
A. William Reynolds |
CEO of Old Mill Group. Director of Eaton Corporation. Former CEO of GenCorp. Former chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. |
Jane E. Shaw |
Chairman and CEO of AeroGen. Director of Intel, IntraBiotics Pharmaceuticals, and McKesson HBOC. Former CEO of ALZA Corp. Founded The Stable Network, a biopharmaceutical consulting firm, in 1995 and has worked as a consultant in the biopharmaceutical industry since that time. |
Frank Shrontz |
Former chairman and CEO of Boeing. Director of Chevron and Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing (3M). |
Carolyn M. Ticknor |
Director of Stamps.com. Former vice president of Hewlett-Packard. |
Ward W. Woods Jr. |
Director and partner of Bessemer Securities. Director of Contour Energy. |
|
2000 sales ($ billion) |
% of total sales |
2000 income ($ million) |
% of total income |
office products |
3.7 |
45% |
237 |
48% |
building products |
2.5 |
30% |
52 |
11% |
paper products |
2.0 |
25% |
203 |
41% |
totals |
8.2 |
100% |
491 |
100% |
net |
$7.8 |
|
(net) $179 |
|
Boise Cascade Office Products |
1999 |
1998 |
1997 |
office supplies |
54% |
61% |
66% |
office paper |
15% |
13% |
13% |
office furniture |
12% |
12% |
11% |
computer supplies |
16% |
10% |
7% |
promotional products |
3% |
4% |
3% |
Boise Cascade Office Products |
United States |
Canada |
France |
Other |
1999 net sales |
$2,584,966,000 |
$382,670,000 |
$240,500,000 |
$173,589,000 |
Year |
Sales ($ million) |
Net income ($ million) |
Federal tax ($ million) |
State tax ($ million) |
Foreign tax ($ million) |
1990 |
4,186 |
75 |
|
|
|
1991 |
3,950 |
- 79 |
|
|
|
1992 |
3,716 |
- 227 |
|
|
|
1993 |
3,958 |
- 77 |
|
|
|
1994 |
4,140 |
- 63 |
|
|
|
1995 |
5,074 |
352 |
-98.2 |
- 7.0 |
13 |
1996 |
5,108 |
9 |
-10.8 |
- 11.5 |
-3.1 |
1997 |
5,493 |
- 30 |
- |
- |
-9.3 |
1998 |
6,200 |
- 34 |
- |
- |
- 8.4 |
1999 |
7,000 |
200 |
- 15.2 |
- 2.1 |
- 13.5 |
2000 |
7,807 |
179 |
|
|
|
Note: "negative" taxes denote tax credits received from various governments.
Boise Cascade's debt is high compared to the timber industry-wide median debt to capital ratio of 37 percent.
Year |
Debt ratio |
1997 |
54 |
1996 |
49 |
1995 |
48 |
1994 |
59 |
1993 |
57 |
1992 |
62 |
1991 |
61 |
1990 |
57 |
1989 |
49 |
1988 |
37 |
The following information on bondholders and banks financiers is from Focus on Finance Newsletter, March 2001.
At the end of 1999, the assets of Boise Cascade amounted to a total of US$ 5.1 billion. The following actors financed these assets:
Shareholders |
31.4% |
Bondholders |
25.8% |
Banks |
11.9% |
Other creditors |
30.9% |
Boise Cascade and its subsidiary Boise Cascade Office Products have issued various forms of bonds (notes, debentures and revenue bonds) to finance their activities. Outstanding at the end of 1999 was US$ 1.3 billion. As none of these bonds is listed on a stock exchange, it is very difficult to identify the bondholders.
Boise Cascade and its subsidiaries owed US$ 609 million to various banks at the end of 1999. Three loan agreements are responsible for the largest part of this amount:
1. A revolving credit agreement signed between Boise Cascade and a group of banks in March 1997, arranged by Bank of America National Trust and Savings Association, the Chase Manhattan Bank and National Westminster Bank. The agreement allows the company to borrow as much as US$ 600 million at variable interest rates, and expires in June 2002. The agreement also contains an expansion option, which entitles the company to increase the borrowing to a maximum of US$ 750 million.
At the end of 1999, Boise Cascade had borrowed US$ 185 million under this agreement. The importance of this revolving credit agreement however goes beyond this figure: it gives the company the financial ability to react instantly at any investment opportunity which might arise.
The group of banks (with in brackets their nationality and financial commitment) consists of:
Bank of America National Trust and Savings Association (United States; US$ 40 million)
Chase Manhattan Bank (United States; US$ 40 million)
National Westminster Bank (United Kingdom; US$ 40 million)
ABN-Amro Bank (The Netherlands; US$ 30 million)
CIBC (United States; US$ 30 million)
Mellon Bank (United States; US$ 30 million)
Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York (United States; US$ 30 million)
Toronto Dominion (Canada; US$ 25 million)
Union Bank of Switzerland (Switzerland; US$ 25 million)
Wachovia Bank of Georgia (United States; US$ 25 million)
Bank of Montreal (Canada; US$ 25 million)
Crédit Lyonnais (France; US$ 25 million)
Nationsbank of North Carolina (United States; US$ 25 million)
Northern Trust Company (United States; US$ 25 million)
Royal Bank of Canada (Canada; US$ 25 million)
Société Générale (France; US$ 25 million)
U.S. Bank of Idaho (United States; US$ 15 million)
Sanwa Bank (Japan; US$ 15 million)
Wells Fargo Bank (United States; US$ 15 million)
Crédit Suisse First Boston (Switzerland; US$ 15 million)
First Bank National Association (United States; US$ 15 million)
First Security Bank (United States; US$ 15 million)
Industrial Bank of Japan (Japan; US$ 15 million)
Long Term Credit Bank of Japan (Japan; US$ 15 million)
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (Australia; US$ 15 million)
2. Boise Cascade Office Products (BCOP), now a full subsidiary of Boise Cascade, signed a revolving credit agreement with a group of banks in June 1997, arranged by Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York and the Chase Manhattan Bank. The agreement allows BCOP to borrow as much as US$ 450 million at variable interest rates, and expires in June 2001. At the end of 1999, BCOP had borrowed US$ 190 million under this agreement.
The group of banks (with in brackets their nationality and financial commitment) consists of:
Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York (United States; US$ 45 million)
Chase Manhattan Bank (United States, US $ 45 million)
Bank of America National Trust and Savings Association (United States, US$ 32.5 million)
CIBC (United States, US$ 32.5 million)
Northern Trust Company (United States, US$ 32.5 million)
Wachovia Bank (United States, US$ 32.5 million)
Crédit Lyonnais (France, US$ 25 million)
Mellon Bank (United States, US$ 25 million)
NationsBank (United States, US$ 25 million)
Royal Bank of Canada (Canada, US$ 25 million)
Toronto Dominion (Canada, US$ 25 million)
ABN-Amro Bank (Netherlands, US$ 15 million)
Bank of Montreal (United States, US$ 15 million)
Bank of New York (United States, US$ 15 million)
First Bank National Association (United States, US$ 15 million)
National Westminster Bank (United Kingdom, US$ 15 million)
Union Bank of Switzerland (Switzerland, US$ 15 million)
Wells Fargo Bank (United States, US$ 15 million)
3. Boise Cascade guaranteed a debt of US$ 133 million with an unknown bank, to fund an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) that is part of the Savings and Supplemental Retirement Plan for the company's U.S. salaried employees.
% of total shares |
Date |
|
STATE STREET BANK AND TRUST |
10.98% |
(PRX 03-21-2000) |
DODGE & COX |
6.10 |
(PRX 03-21-2000) |
FORSTMANN-LEFF ASSOCIATES LLC |
11.50% |
(PRX 03-21-2000) |
MORGAN STANLEY DEAN |
5.17% |
(PRX 03-21-2000) |
TYPE |
DATE(Q,M) |
NUMBER |
SHARES HELD |
% OF TOTAL SHARES |
INSTITUTIONS |
09/30/2000(Q) |
199 |
48,898,000 |
85 |
5% OWNERS |
09/30/2000(M) |
8 |
38,231,000 |
67 |
INSIDERS |
09/30/2000(M) |
18 |
37,000 |
0.06 |
Note: Insiders have recently sold 228,364 shares.
(only shareholders of more than 100,000 shares are listed; public institutions are listed in bold)
|
latest quarter change in shares |
shares held |
date |
FORSTMANN-LEFF ASSOCIATES |
-356,519 |
9,147,991 |
09/30/2000 |
DODGE & COX, INC. |
255,850 |
4,130,899 |
09/30/2000 |
STATE STREET CORPORATION |
9,311 |
3,015,714 |
09/30/2000 |
FRANKLIN RESOURCES INC |
263,280 |
2,889,998 |
09/30/2000 |
MSDW & COMPANY |
727,351 |
2,659,254 |
09/30/2000 |
PUTNAM INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT |
1,502,295 |
2,578,260 |
09/30/2000 |
BARCLAYS BANK PLC |
-166,221 |
1,769,362 |
09/30/2000 |
SANFORD C BERNSTEIN & CO |
-74,175 |
1,295,562 |
09/30/2000 |
MERRILL LYNCH INVESTMENT |
218,418 |
1,278,843 |
09/30/2000 |
JENNISON ASSOCIATES LLC |
617,200 |
1,195,400 |
09/30/2000 |
DIMENSIONAL FUND ADVISORS |
101,300 |
1,026,500 |
09/30/2000 |
VANGUARD GROUP |
2,571 |
988,737 |
09/30/2000 |
LUTHER KING CAPITAL MANAGE |
253,050 |
926,050 |
09/30/2000 |
SUNTRUST BANKS INC |
-75,908 |
713,126 |
09/30/2000 |
FUND ASSET MANAGEMENT |
175,400 |
629,100 |
09/30/2000 |
PRIMECAP MANAGEMENT COMPANY |
-5,400 |
623,195 |
09/30/2000 |
BANK ONE CORPORATION |
551,582 |
602,607 |
09/30/2000 |
OHIO PUBLIC EMPLOYEES RETIR |
-1,254 |
555,355 |
09/30/2000 |
DEPRINCE, RACE & ZOLLO |
-5,900 |
514,800 |
09/30/2000 |
TAUNUS CORPORATION |
-85,828 |
481,177 |
09/30/2000 |
MCGLINN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT |
-5,550 |
467,833 |
09/30/2000 |
BANKMONT FINANCIAL CORP |
-27,795 |
446,424 |
09/30/2000 |
MELLON BANK NA |
-158,299 |
418,193 |
09/30/2000 |
LSV ASSET MANAGEMENT |
-9,500 |
407,170 |
09/30/2000 |
COLLEGE RETIRE EQUITIES |
23,800 |
398,532 |
09/30/2000 |
FIDELITY MANAGEMENT & RESEA |
93,200 |
391,160 |
09/30/2000 |
CITIGROUP INC |
-942,831 |
364,346 |
09/30/2000 |
OLSTEIN & ASSOCIATES, L. P. |
-70,100 |
352,400 |
09/30/2000 |
INVESCO CAPITAL MANAGEMENT |
-12,900 |
340,001 |
09/30/2000 |
ADVISORY RESEARCH, INC. |
40,723 |
312,603 |
09/30/2000 |
DRESDNER RCM GLOBAL INVEST |
302,050 |
302,050 |
09/30/2000 |
WELLINGTON MANAGEMENT CO |
4,000 |
285,900 |
09/30/2000 |
BATTERYMARCH FINANCIAL MAN |
0 |
275,100 |
12/31/1999 |
PRUDENTIAL INSURANCE CO |
-137,700 |
243,992 |
09/30/2000 |
FIRST UNION CORPORATION |
-195,995 |
242,348 |
09/30/2000 |
CALIFORNIA PUBLIC EMPLOYEES |
0 |
228,223 |
09/30/2000 |
PETROLEUM & RESOURCES |
0 |
205,000 |
09/30/2000 |
INVESCO (NEW YORK) |
10,800 |
201,601 |
12/31/1999 |
WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A. |
176,629 |
200,846 |
06/30/2000 |
OPPENHEIMERFUNDS INC. |
0 |
200,000 |
09/30/2000 |
NORTHERN TRUST COMPANY |
-8,253 |
190,699 |
09/30/2000 |
CALIFORNIA STATE TEACHERS R |
400 |
190,235 |
09/30/2000 |
JACOBS LEVY EQUITY MANAGEME |
-212,900 |
181,800 |
09/30/2000 |
TEACHER RET SYS OF TEXAS |
-24,000 |
179,300 |
09/30/2000 |
TURNER INVESTMENT PARTNERS, |
-2,370 |
176,960 |
09/30/2000 |
NEW YORK STATE COMMON RETIR |
-34,200 |
176,273 |
09/30/2000 |
LUTHERAN BROTHERHOOD |
0 |
175,600 |
09/30/2000 |
DENVER INVESTMENT ADVR LLC |
14,300 |
167,400 |
09/30/2000 |
FLORIDA STATE BOARD OF ADMI |
-6,300 |
164,950 |
09/30/2000 |
CROFT-LEOMINSTER, INC. |
-16,675 |
163,687 |
09/30/2000 |
INVESTMENT RESEARCH COMPANY |
25,000 |
161,100 |
09/30/2000 |
COLONIAL MANAGEMENT ASSOCIA |
-200 |
144,000 |
09/30/2000 |
WILSHIRE ASSOC INC |
600 |
140,932 |
09/30/2000 |
DEWEY SQUARE INVESTORS CORP |
-3,000 |
137,780 |
09/30/2000 |
WM ADVISORS, INC. |
2,800 |
135,808 |
09/30/2000 |
DAVID VAUGHAN INVESTMENTS |
23,100 |
124,431 |
09/30/2000 |
DONALD SMITH & COMPANY |
0 |
110,000 |
09/30/2000 |
AXA FINANCIAL, INC. |
-15,380 |
100,476 |
09/30/2000 |
PRINCIPAL LIFE INSURANCE |
-849,633 |
96,058 |
09/30/2000 |
COLUMBIA MANAGEMENT COMPANY |
-113,000 |
90,200 |
09/30/2000 |
VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYS |
7,800 |
88,971 |
09/30/2000 |
CHASE MANHATTAN CORP |
-3,600 |
87,525 |
09/30/2000 |
WYSER-PRATTE MANAGEMENT |
80,000 |
80,000 |
09/30/2000 |
CHARLES SCHWAB INVESTMENT |
266 |
76,082 |
09/30/2000 |
WORLD ASSET MANAGEMENT |
-2,538 |
62,626 |
09/30/2000 |
APEX CAPITAL, LLC |
0 |
60,000 |
09/30/2000 |
BANK OF AMERICA CORPORATION |
-16,751 |
59,348 |
09/30/2000 |
UNITED STATES TRUST COMPANY |
11,480 |
58,705 |
09/30/2000 |
NATIONWIDE MUTUAL INS CO |
-70,100 |
55,000 |
09/30/2000 |
BEAR, STEARNS & CO. INC. |
6,820 |
54,282 |
09/30/2000 |
FROST NATIONAL BANK |
0 |
52,158 |
09/30/2000 |
FRANK RUSSELL COMPANY |
-130,100 |
51,100 |
09/30/2000 |
PAINEWEBBER GROUP INC |
-1,186 |
48,796 |
09/30/2000 |
IBM RETIREMENT FUNDS |
418 |
48,721 |
09/30/2000 |
AELTUS INVESTMENT MANAGEMEN |
3,450 |
46,652 |
09/30/2000 |
CATALYST INVESTMENT MGMT. |
-83,758 |
46,242 |
09/30/2000 |
STATE TEACHERS RET SYST OF |
-3,700 |
46,008 |
09/30/2000 |
INVESCO MANAGEMENT & RESEAR |
6,100 |
44,100 |
12/31/1999 |
ROULSTON & COMPANY, INC. |
-4,550 |
43,500 |
09/30/2000 |
CREDIT SUISSE FIRST BOSTON |
4,984 |
41,651 |
09/30/2000 |
LASALLE NATIONAL BANK |
-1,975 |
41,382 |
09/30/2000 |
UBS WARBURG LLC |
-62 |
39,955 |
09/30/2000 |
RAYMOND JAMES & ASSOCIATES, |
675 |
37,115 |
09/30/2000 |
METROPOLITAN LIFE INSURANCE |
200 |
36,967 |
09/30/2000 |
T. ROWE PRICE ASSOCIATES |
-911 |
35,900 |
09/30/2000 |
PENNSYLVANIA PUBLIC SCHOOL |
-40,900 |
34,093 |
09/30/2000 |
BEL AIR INVESTMENT ADVISORS |
34,000 |
34,000 |
09/30/2000 |
STATE OF MICH STATE TREASUR |
-300 |
33,064 |
09/30/2000 |
NOMURA SECURITIES CO., LTD. |
-1,595 |
32,955 |
09/30/2000 |
SCUDDER KEMPER INVESTMENTS, |
32,136 |
32,936 |
09/30/2000 |
PUBLIC EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT |
-800 |
31,900 |
09/30/2000 |
GOLDMAN SACHS & COMPANY |
-39,610 |
29,800 |
09/30/2000 |
MERRILL LYNCH & CO INC |
-7,522 |
28,895 |
09/30/2000 |
COMERICA INC |
-377 |
28,754 |
09/30/2000 |
LEGAL & GENERAL GROUP PLC |
3,841 |
28,363 |
09/30/2000 |
NWI MANAGEMENT, L. P. |
28,000 |
28,000 |
09/30/2000 |
CIGNA CORPORATION |
600 |
26,504 |
09/30/2000 |
UNION PLANTERS BANK, NA |
25,700 |
25,700 |
09/30/2000 |
AMERICAN GENERAL CORPORATIO |
-500 |
25,400 |
09/30/2000 |
PACIFIC INCOME ADVISERS |
25,020 |
09/30/2000 |
|
MEEDER ASSET MANAGEMENT |
0 |
24,400 |
09/30/2000 |
U S WEST INVESTMENT MANAGEM |
24,042 |
09/30/2000 |
|
HARVARD COLLEGE |
-245,000 |
23,300 |
09/30/2000 |
NEW YORK LIFE INSURANCE CO |
22,150 |
09/30/2000 |
|
COBALT CAPITAL MANAGEMENT |
20,000 |
09/30/2000 |
|
JOHNSON ASSET MANAGEMENT OF |
20,000 |
20,000 |
09/30/2000 |
MCGAHAN GREENE MCHUGH CAPIT |
20,000 |
09/30/2000 |
|
ADDISON CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, |
3,100 |
19,440 |
09/30/2000 |
AMALGAMATED BANK OF NEW YOR |
19,065 |
09/30/2000 |
|
BANK OF NEW YORK |
-600 |
18,464 |
09/30/2000 |
PRUDENTIAL SECURITIES INC. |
-2,066 |
18,450 |
09/30/2000 |
BNP PARIBAS ARBITRAGE SNC |
18,276 |
18,276 |
09/30/2000 |
NORTHWESTERN MUTUAL INVT |
-100 |
18,100 |
09/30/2000 |
TRW INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT |
18,000 |
09/30/2000 |
|
U S BANCORP |
1,296 |
17,764 |
09/30/2000 |
I. G. INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT |
17,000 |
09/30/2000 |
|
KEN ROBERTS INVESTMENT MANA |
16,950 |
09/30/2000 |
|
HARTFORD INVESTMENT MANAGE |
16,586 |
09/30/2000 |
|
KEY TRUST COMPANY OF OHIO N |
16,178 |
09/30/2000 |
|
KENTUCKY TEACHERS RETIREMEN |
15,300 |
09/30/2000 |
|
PANAGORA ASSET MANAGEMENT I |
14,452 |
09/30/2000 |
|
FEDERATED INVESTORS INCORPO |
13,800 |
09/30/2000 |
|
SEARS INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT |
0 |
13,800 |
09/30/2000 |
JEMMCO INVESTMENT MANAGEMEN |
13,400 |
09/30/2000 |
|
JP MORGAN & COMPANY INC |
-7,368 |
13,231 |
09/30/2000 |
JOHN D & CATHERINE T MACART |
13,137 |
06/30/2000 |
|
TD ASSET MANAGEMENT INC. |
-3,703 |
12,899 |
09/30/2000 |
AMERICAN EXPRESS FINANCIAL |
12,778 |
09/30/2000 |
|
INTEL CORPORATION |
-500 |
12,255 |
09/30/2000 |
WEISS, PECK & GREER, L.L.C. |
-8,150 |
11,796 |
09/30/2000 |
GW CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, INC. |
-400 |
11,550 |
09/30/2000 |
FERGUSON, WELLMAN, RUDD, PU |
11,175 |
09/30/2000 |
|
PIMCO ADVR L P |
34 |
11,157 |
09/30/2000 |
FIRSTAR CORPORATION |
4,722 |
10,650 |
09/30/2000 |
STATE STR RESEARCH & MANAGE |
10,273 |
09/30/2000 |
|
EXXONMOBIL INVESTMENT MGMT |
-1,000 |
10,239 |
09/30/2000 |
RESOURCE TRUST COMPANY |
0 |
10,000 |
09/30/2000 |
NAME OF OWNER |
SHARES HELD |
DATE |
BERNSTEIN INVESTMENT RESEARCH |
3,169,448 |
12/31/1994 13G |
DODGE & COX, INC. |
3,479,913 |
12/31/1999 13G |
FORSTMANN LEFF ASSOCIATES INC |
6,571,851 |
12/31/1999 13G |
FORSTMANN-LEFF ASSOCIATES, LLC |
9,496,110 |
06/30/2000 13G |
FRANKLIN ADVISERS, INC. |
75,843 |
01/05/2000 13G |
MSDW |
4,904,157 |
12/31/1998 13G |
MSDW & COMPANY |
2,953,102 |
12/31/1999 13G |
STATE STR BANK & TRUST COMPANY |
7,580,544 |
12/31/1999 13G |
TOTAL OF 8 OWNERS |
38,230,968 |
|
|
Relationship |
Shares held |
Date |
SPENCER EDSON W |
D |
16,774 |
08/1998 |
MILLIKEN CHRISTOPHER C |
VP |
4,600 |
05/2000 |
HARAD GEORGE J |
CB |
3,511 |
05/2000 |
PARRISH RICHARD B |
VP |
3,358 |
11/1997 |
MICHAEL GARY G |
D |
2,345 |
08/2000 |
SPENCE N DAVID |
VP |
2,028 |
05/2000 |
DANIS PETER G |
O |
1,300 |
04/1998 |
CRUMLEY THEODORE |
CF |
1,247 |
05/2000 |
RUIZ DE LUZURIAGA FRANCES D |
D |
1,000 |
01/1999 |
HANNITY VINCENT T |
VP |
481 |
12/1997 |
MACDONALD DONALD S |
D |
200 |
04/2000 |
BENDER JOHN C |
VP |
132 |
08/1999 |
LOWE JEFFREY G |
VP |
93 |
07/1999 |
HOLLERAN JOHN W |
VP |
70 |
05/2000 |
BALKINS JAMES A |
VP |
65 |
07/1999 |
CARLILE TOM E |
VP |
52 |
05/2000 |
MERSON RICHARD W |
VP |
46 |
07/1999 |
HURLBUTT GUY GORDON |
VP |
31 |
07/1998 |
TOTAL OF 18 OWNERS |
|
37,333 |
|
Note: These insiders have recently sold 228,364 shares.
Corporate and Public Timber Supplies
Acres of Timberland Controlled
As mentioned at the beginning of this profile, much of "Boise Cascade's" land came from a huge (and improper) public land subsidy in the 19th century. By the 1960s, Boise Cascade held ten billion board feet on 1.5 million acres in the Northwestern, Midwestern, and Southern U.S., and in the Philippines; it had cutting rights to another four million acres in Canada.
Boise Cascade held 2.6 million acres in the U.S. in the early 1980s. In the 1980s it reduced its holdings in the western Cascades, from 597,000 acres to 450,000 acres. In June 1991 it sold another 30,000 acres in western Oregon. Its holdings include 30,000 acres inside the Colville Indian Reservation in eastern Washington. (Cutting rights in Canada transferred to Rainy in 1995).
As of 1999, Boise Cascade owns or leases more two million acres in the United States: 1,400,000 acres in the Northwest, 300,000 acres in the Midwest, and 700,000 acres in the South.
|
Northwest |
Midwest |
U.S. South |
Total |
Fee |
1,331,000 |
308,000 |
418,000 |
2,057,000 |
Lease or contract |
51,000 |
--- |
284,000 |
335,000 |
Total |
1,382,000 |
308 |
702,000 |
2,392,000 |
Percentage of cut from company-controlled land |
25 % |
23 % |
25 % |
25 % |
Year-end |
Merchantible sawtimber (billion board feet) |
Pulpwood (million cords) |
1995 |
9.0 |
15.9 |
1996 |
7.6 |
7.6 |
1997 |
7.7 |
7.8 |
Despite owning or leasing more than two million acres in the United States, only a third of the billion board feet of sawtimber and a million and a half cords of pulpwood Boise Cascade mills consumed in 1998 came from its own land.
Boise Cascade was by far the #1 purchaser of U.S. National Forest timber during the last decade (1991-2000). Boise Cascade's U.S. Public Timber Cutting
Top Ten Puchasers of National Forest Timber, 1991-2000
Purchaser |
Thousand Board Feet Cut |
Dollars Paid |
Boise Cascade |
807,221 |
$172,695,829 |
Sierra Pacific Industries |
681,985 |
$141,259,586 |
Ketchikan Pulp Co |
600,029 |
$51,200,532 |
Weyerhaeuser Co |
419,142 |
$64,450,875 |
Louisiana-Pacific Corp |
407,669 |
$48,834,883 |
Alaska Pulp Corp |
393,068 |
$18,064,485 |
D.R. Johnson Lumber (Oregon) |
352,578 |
$58,493,156 |
Stone Container Corp |
263,689 |
$31,994,557 |
Georgia-Pacific |
249,624 |
$39,755,698 |
Biewer Sawmill (Michigan) |
217,032 |
$17,841,492 |
Boise Cascade's Public Timber Purchases, by National Forest Region
US Forest Service |
No. of timber sales purchased by |
Thousand board feet |
Amount paid by Boise Cascade |
Region 1 |
1 |
12,952 |
$3,191,380 |
Region 3 |
1 |
4,345 |
$1,174,388 |
Region 4 |
103 |
400,787 |
$89,207,114 |
Region 5 |
3 |
5,222 |
$2,438,523 |
Region 6 |
99 |
270,756 |
$69,907,011 |
Region 9 |
30 |
113,159 |
$6,777,413 |
Total |
807,221 |
$172,695,829 |
Boise Cascade's Public Timber Purchases, by National Forest
National Forest |
USFS Region |
No. of timber sales purchased by Boise Cascade |
Thousand board feet cut |
Amount paid by Boise Cascade |
|
Nez Perce |
1 |
1 |
12,952 |
$3,191,380 |
|
Kaibab |
3 |
1 |
4,345 |
$1,174,388 |
|
Boise |
4 |
70 |
248,006 |
$49,387,075 |
|
unknown |
4 |
1 |
1,444 |
$344,928 |
|
Dixie |
4 |
1 |
2,298 |
$168,076 |
|
Payette |
4 |
24 |
136,945 |
$38,194,294 |
|
Salmon and Challis |
4 |
1 |
259 |
$55,944 |
|
Sawtooth |
4 |
6 |
11,835 |
$1,056,797 |
|
Klamath |
5 |
3 |
5,222 |
$2,438,523 |
|
Deschutes |
6 |
2 |
2,160 |
$723,598 |
|
Fremont |
6 |
3 |
3,410 |
$1,443,585 |
|
Malheur |
6 |
9 |
23,224 |
$8,113,591 |
|
Ochoco |
6 |
1 |
2,482 |
$133,293 |
|
Okanogan |
6 |
9 |
14,885 |
$3,750,353 |
|
Rogue River |
6 |
6 |
12,812 |
$4,922,226 |
|
Siuslaw |
6 |
3 |
11,894 |
$2,612,059 |
|
Umatilla |
6 |
11 |
38,675 |
$4,885,479 |
|
Umpqua |
6 |
4 |
24,186 |
$13,974,288 |
|
Wallowa-Whitman |
6 |
20 |
40,540 |
$7,154,068 |
|
Wenatchee |
6 |
9 |
30,792 |
$1,984,761 |
|
Willamette |
6 |
2 |
5,271 |
$1,827,018 |
|
Winema |
6 |
8 |
33,819 |
$13,069,173 |
|
Colville |
6 |
12 |
26,605 |
$5,313,518 |
|
Chippewa |
9 |
7 |
14,256 |
$1,085,412 |
|
Superior |
9 |
23 |
98,903 |
$5,692,001 |
According to Common Cause, Boise Cascade was the second-largest recipient of U.S. Forest Service road credits (public subsidies to build logging roads across national forests) from 1991 to 1997:
Sierra Pacific Industries |
$ 20,314,336 |
Boise Cascade |
$ 18,894,511 |
Willamette Industries |
$ 8,777,755 |
Weyerhaeuser |
$ 7,460,715 |
Stone Container |
$ 5,260,687 |
Plum Creek Timber |
$ 4,648,460 |
Potlatch |
$ 4,172,731 |
Hi-Ridge Lumber |
$ 3,791,097 |
Champion International |
$ 3,595,788 |
Shearer Lumber |
$ 3,352,075 |
Products |
State |
Location |
Notes |
Paper, uncoated free sheet, market pulp |
Alabama |
Jackson |
|
Paper, containerboard, newsprint |
Louisiana |
DeRidder |
|
Paper, uncoated free sheet |
Minnesota |
International Falls |
|
Paper, uncoated free sheet, market pulp |
Oregon |
St Helens |
|
Paper, uncoated free sheet, containerboard, market pulp |
Oregon |
Wallula |
20,000 acres of cottonwood trees. |
Corrugated container |
Idaho |
Burley |
|
Corrugated container |
Idaho |
Nampa |
|
Corrugated container |
Nevada |
Sparks |
|
Corrugated container |
Oregon |
Salem |
|
Corrugated container |
Utah |
Salt Lake City |
|
Corrugated container |
Washington |
Spokane |
|
Corrugated container |
Washington |
Wallula |
|
Office products distribution centers |
U.S. |
32 states |
|
Office products distribution centers |
Australia |
7 locations |
|
Office products distribution centers |
Canada |
AL, BC, MN, NB, ON, QE |
Includes 70 retail stores. |
Office products distribution centers |
Farnce |
Paris |
|
Office products distribution centers |
Germany |
Hamburg |
|
Office products distribution centers |
UK |
Bolton and Dorchester |
|
Building materials wholesale distribution centers |
AZ, CO, ID, MN, MT, NM, OK, TX, UT, WA |
|
|
Plywood/veneer |
Louisiana |
Florien |
|
Plywood/veneer |
Louisiana |
Oakdale |
|
Plywood/veneer |
Oregon |
Elgin |
|
Plywood/veneer |
Oregon |
Independence |
|
Plywood/veneer |
Oregon |
Medford |
|
Plywood/veneer |
Oregon |
St Helens |
|
Plywood/veneer |
Oregon |
White City |
|
Plywood/veneer |
Oregon |
Willamina |
|
Plywood/veneer |
Washington |
Kettle Falls |
|
Plywood/veneer |
Washington |
Yakima |
|
Lumber |
Alabama |
Jackson |
|
Lumber |
Louisiana |
Fisher |
|
Lumber |
Oregon |
Elgin |
|
Lumber |
Oregon |
La Grande |
|
Lumber |
Oregon |
Medford |
|
Lumber |
Oregon |
White City |
|
Lumber |
Washington |
Kettle Falls |
|
Lumber |
Washington |
Yakima |
|
Particleboard |
Oregon |
La Grande |
|
Oriented strand board |
Canada |
Ontario, Barwick |
47 % interest in OSB joint venture |
Laminated neveer lumber, wood I-joists |
Louisana |
Alexandria |
|
Laminated neveer lumber, wood I-joists |
Oregon |
White City |
|
Subsidiary |
Location |
Notes |
BC Foreign Sales Corp. |
Virgin Islands, St. Thomas |
Manufacturer of stationary and paper products. |
BCT |
Idaho, Boise |
Trucking company. |
Beaver Falls Power Co. |
New York, Beaver Falls |
Utility. |
Boise Cascade Canada Ltd. |
Ontario, Toronto |
Manufacturing of pulp and paper. |
Boise Cascade Office Products Corp. |
Boise ID |
Spun off in April 1995; at year-end 1997, Boise held 81 % of the common stock. |
Boise Cascade Office Products Corp. |
Europe. |
Boise has a 50 % interest in a marketing joint venture with Otto Versand. |
Boise Cascade Sales Ltd. |
England, Amersham, Bucks. |
Wood products distribution. |
Boise Southern. |
|
|
Bovill |
Idaho, Boise |
Holding company for investments in joint ventures. |
Brownville Power Co. |
New York, Brownville |
Utility. |
Clearfield Insurance Ltd. |
Idaho, Boise |
Insurance. |
Compania Industrial Puerto Montt SA |
Chile, Bahia Ilque. |
1998 joint venture with Forestal Condor. |
Costa Grande Forest Products |
Mexico, Guerrero, Papanoa. |
|
Cuban Electric Co. |
Idaho, Boise |
Holding company incorporated in Florida; assets expropriated by Cuban government. |
Duropack Welpappe Aktiengesellschaft |
Austria, Vienna |
Manufacturing of containers; Boise Cascade owns 50 percent. |
Duropack Welpappe Gesellschaft m.b.H. |
Austria, Kalsdorf bei Graz |
Container manufacturing. |
Ebasint International Inc. |
Idaho, Boise |
Public utility service. |
Emmett Power Co. |
Idaho, Boise |
Cogeneration and hydroelectric. |
Horseshoe Bend Hydroelectric Co. |
Idaho, Boise |
Hydroelectric and cogeneration project. |
International Falls Power Co. |
Minnesota, International Falls |
Utility. |
Kettle Falls Limestone Co. |
Idaho, Boise |
|
King Solomon Mining Corp. |
Idaho, Boise |
|
Minnesota Dakota & Western Railway |
Minnesota, International Falls |
Shortline railroad incorporated in Minnesota. |
Norlig Mining Co. |
Idaho, Boise |
Mineral resources exploration and development. |
Normin Mining Co. |
Idaho, Boise |
|
Oquossoc Mineral Corp. |
Idaho, Boise |
|
Orient Mining Co. |
Idaho, Boise |
|
Oxford Paper Co. |
Maine, Rumford |
Forest products and paper manufacturing; in 1996, Boise sold 667,000 acres of timberland to Mead Corp. in connection with the sale of its coated publication paper business. |
Pine City Fiber Company. |
|
|
Ponderosa Fibres |
Washington |
Boise has a 25 % interest. |
Rainy River Forest Products |
Canada |
Canadian subsidiary spun off in Oct. 1994; Boise owned 49 % of Rainy River common stock and 60 % of the total equity. With Rainy River's merger with Stone Consolidated in Nov. 1995, Boise exchanged its interest in Rainy for Stone Consolidated's common stock; in 1996, Boise sold its Stone stock. |
Rumford Cogeneration |
Idaho, Boise |
Hydroelectric and cogeneration project. |
Schumacher GmbH & Co. OHG |
Germany, Ansbach |
Container manufacturing. |
SNC Mining Co. |
Idaho, Boise |
|
Voyageur Panel |
Ontario, Canada |
47 % interest. |
Mill closures and restructuring reduced employment at Boise Cascade from 35,000 in the 1980s to 22,000 employees in 1997.
Boise Cascade's "Blueprint for the '90s" called for a shift of its pulp and paper operations away from the Pacific Northwest. During the 1980s, Boise Cascade increased its mill capacity in the southern U.S. by 475 percent, while decreasing its Pacific Northwest "westside" capacity by 19 percent, and began selling off timberland:
By the year 2001, Boise Cascade's Idaho operations had ceased altogether.
|
Revenues U.S.$ billions |
Profits U.S.$ millions |
CEO pay salary/bonus stock options |
Current employ-ment |
Jobs lost |
U.S. land controlled (acres) |
Non-U.S. land controlled (acres) |
Boise Cascade |
6.162 |
(37) |
$1,642,832 $ 811,092 |
23,039 |
13,000 jobs lost 1980s-1997 |
2,392,000 |
Canadian and Chilean joint ventures. |
When it closes mills, Boise Cascade typically blames environmental restrictions, "the ongoing global financial crisis," the "weak business environment," -- but Boise Cascade's "Blueprint for the '90s" called for a deliberate shift of its pulp and paper operations away from the Pacific Northwest. During the 1980s, Boise Cascade increased its mill capacity in the southern U.S. by 475 percent, while decreasing its Pacific Northwest "westside" capacity by 19 percent. But at the same time Boise is closing sawmills at home, it is "taking steps to access foreign wood baskets."
Boise Cascade Office Products is expanding across the globe by buying up office, computer, and paper products companies. In 1996, 19 businesses were acquired, including 4 in Canada and 3 in Australia. In 1997, BCOP bought 8 businesses, including 2 in France and 1 in the UK. In 1998, BCOP acquired another 6 businesses, including 1 in Spain and 2 in Canada. "Executives at Boise Cascade Office Products plan to continue the company's bold corporate growth strategy into... the next millennium."
While it searches the globe for cheaper timber and more office products customers, Boise Cascade is a member of the nonprofit association Buy Idaho. "The concept of marketing goods and services locally is a viable concept," claims former radio station owner Dale Peterson, who is Buy Idaho's Executive Director. Bruce Belcher, a former advertising agency owner and now the president of Buy Idaho's board, said "the backbone of the U.S. economy is still small businesses and homegrown businesses," and "we have a number of people who feel it's a patriotic Idaho thing to support."
Meanwhile, state and federal funding goes towards picking up the pieces. The Idaho Small Business Development Center has opened offices to aid struggling businesses in Council, Horseshoe Bend, and other towns abandoned by Boise Cascade.
Joint venture with Companhia Suzano de Papel e Celulose, a major Brazilian pulp and paper producer, to acquire and operate Boise Cascade's Jackson, Alabama pulp mill.
Joint venture with Grupo Klabin (Papel e Celulose) headquartered in Curitiba, Brazil: Boise Cascade in June 1999 signed an agreement with Industrias Klabin de Papel e Celulose S.A. from Brazil, to establish a 50-50% joint venture (Klabin Boise Madeiras S.A.) to produce and market pine lumber. The estimated US$90 million investment in the sawmill project is financed primarily by equity contributed by the partners and by long-term debt financing from Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Economico e Social (BNDES) from Brazil. BNDES is one of the few financial institutions in the world that has made FSC certification a requirement for receiving loans from a recently approved credit package to finance the harvesting of timber and other forest products from natural forests. This project poses a new challenge to Boise Cascade, because Klabin's 219.000 hectares plantation area is already FSC-certified. As 85% of the pine lumber will be exported, mostly to the USA, the question rises if Boise Cascade will market these products under the FSC-logo.
Boise Cascade owns a 47 percent interest in the Voyageur Panel oriented strand board (OSB) venture in Ontario. Boise Cascade operates the plant and markets the 400 million square feet of OSB produced annually.
In 1997, Boise Cascade and the Chilean firm Maderas Condor S.A. (aka Forestal Condor) formed a joint venture named Cascada Chile (later named Company Industrial Puerto Montt, or CIPM) to build a $180 million in a wood-chipping and oriented strand board facility in Bahia Ilque, Chile. The plant would produce 400 million square feet of OSB a year, doubling Boise Cascade's OSB capacity.
An environmental impact study for the project prepared by Dames & Moore (the same consulting form which prepared a study for Trillium's proposed timber project in Chile) analyzed only the impacts of building the mill and port, and not the impacts of cutting thousands of acres of timber to feed the mill. Cascada Chile has published advertisements distorting citizen opposition, and the local newspaper Llanquihue published an editorial supporting the "Ilque and the hen of gold eggs" and attacking opponents as "eco-terroristas."
The public relations firm Burson Marsteller, contracted by Boise Cascade, tried to distort the findings of a technical study done by the department of forestry at the Universidad de Concepcion, but two days later the university foresters revealed the manipulation of their technical report, and declared that the project is unsustainable. When deputies of the House of Representatives visited Ilque in September 1998 to present opposition to the Cascada project, and criticized the Forest National Corporation (CONAF) for irregularities at the local and regional level, the company paid more than 20 farmers to demonstrate against the deputies.
Numerous lawsuits have been filed against the project, one by the local salmon industry, another by adjacent property owners. Another lawsuit charged that the Chilean Congress improperly approved the project. Yet another lawsuit was filed on behalf of NGOs, small farmers, scientists, and local people claiming that the project would violate the constitutional right to a clean environment. And CRS Forestal filed suit against Boise Cascade, accusing it of illegally appropriating the intellectual idea of the Cascada OSB project.
Chronology
May 1997: Boise Cascade and the Chilean firm Maderas Condor (aka Forestal Condor) formed a joint venture to build a $180 million in a wood-chipping and oriented strand board facility in Bahia Ilque Chile The plant would produce 400 million square feet of OSB a year, doubling Boise Cascade's OSB capacity.
The venture was named Cascada Chile (later Company Industrial Puerto Montt S.A.). Directors included two Boise Cascade vice presidents, John W. Holleran and Karen Gowland; and Joseph S. Munson and Steven Thomas.
November 1997: Chile Cascade entered two estates (Roll Nro. 2114-29) in the Puerto Montt commune, and took part in locating archaeological and conchales sites in these estates. It cuts native forests without management plans, breaking national laws regarding monument and archaeological sites (decree 701 of forest promotion and law 19,300 of Bases of the Environment).
March 1998: the joint venture's Canadian partners file suit against Boise Cascade , accusing it of the illegal appropriation of the intellectual idea of the Cascada OSB project.
May 1998: The Ministry of National Goods of Chile gives a direct lease to CIPM for both fiscal estates, for a term of 5 years for $1,465,750. The lease is made in spite of knowledge that the company already had violations (file 980211707217 Ministry of National Goods).
May 1998: CIPM environmental impact study prepared by Dames & Moore, the same consulting form which prepared a study for Trillium's proposed timber project in Chile.
June 1998: Several Chileans make an offer before the Ministry of National Goods to purchase the the fiscal estate Roll Nro. 2114-29 as a measure to stop the destruction of the archaeological site. In July the Ministerial Regional Secretary of National Goods rejects the request.
June 1998: The Chilean government and the Demócrata Cristiano (DC) party support the chip project (Llanquihue Daily Chronicle, June 26).
July 28, 1998: The local newspaper Llanquihue publishes an editorial supporting the "Ilque and the hen of gold eggs" and attacking the opponents as "ecoterroristas." Cascada Chile takes out advertisements distorting citizen opposition.
August 1998: citizens of Puerto Montt accuse the president of Corema (Regional Commission of the Environment) and the Intendente of the region of Los Lagos (Rabindranat Quinteros) of being prejudiced in favor the project (Llanquihue, July 8).
September 1998: The Cascada project is accused in the court of appeals of Puerto Montt of destroying archaeological sites more than 5,000 years old. The judicial complaint was presented by the House of Tourism of Puerto Montt, by the deputies Arturo Longton (RN); Guido Girardi (Ppd); Alexander Navarro (Ps), the Association of Industralists of the Tourism, and the president of the Committee of Ilque, and Marcel Claude (Economist of Terram Foundation).
September 1998: Forest Police (OS-5) accuse CIPM and its legal representative Robert Crawford (Boise Cascade) of illegal cutting and asks for the corresponding fines (Part Nro. 12. Second Court of Local Police. Puerto Montt).
September 1998: The Municipality of Puerto Montt asks the department of forestry at the University of Conception for a study of the impact of the project. Public relations firm Burson Marsteller, contracted by Boise Cascade y Maderas Cóndor S.A. (Chile Cascade), distorts the findings of the technical study (Llanquihue Chronicle, Sept 3), but two days later the foresters of the University of Conception clarify this manipulation of their technical report and declare that the project is unsustainable.
September 1998: Deputies of the House of Representatives visits Ilque to present its opposition to the Cascada project criticizing the Forest National Corporation (Conaf) for irregularities at the local and regional level. CIPM pays more than 20 farmers to demonstrate against the deputies.
September 1998: Cascada Chile invites members of the Regional Council (Core), Councilmen (Luis Eagle of RN and Osvaldo Wistuba of the DC), the press (Katherine Bopp of the Daily Llanquihue and TVN) to visit the Voyageur OSB facility in Barwick, Ontario, Canada.
October 1998: Cascada coordinator Alexander Larenas claims that the Forest National Corporation gave its verbal authorization to cut. Conaf claims it can control the operations of the project (Llanquihue Chronicle, October 10).
October 1998: CIPM, represented by Miguel Aylwin Oyarzun (son of Patricio Aylwin, ex-president of Chile), asks the Service of Geology and Mining of Chile (Sernageomin) for four mining concessions covering 1,100 hectares in Ilque without informing to the Commission for the Environment.
November 1998: Cascada Chile coordinator Alexander Larenas is dismissed for endangering the project with his aggressive attitude. He assumes the position Italo Zunino (Jr).
Numerous lawsuits were filed against the project; as of April 16, 1999:
1. Administrative lawsuit by salmon industry.
2. Constitutional provision against the resolution that approved the project.
3) Criminal lawsuit by the Green Caucus for harm to the archealogical site.
4. Constitutional provision for affecting the right to live in a clean and unpolluted environment; filed by FIMA on the behalf of NGOs, small farmers, scientists, and local people.
5. Another lawsuit by the state for bulldozing the archaeological site (Augustin Ramirez).
In May 1999, the Court of Appeal fined Cascada Chile $825,000 for destroying a 5,000-year-old archaeological site, to be added to a fine for illegally cutting trees.
February 2001: Boise Cascade announced it was cancelling the Cascada project.
Boise Cascade has signed a $13 million joint-venture agreement with Shenzhen Leasing to manufacture and sell carbonless paper in China under the name Zhuhai Hiwin Boise Cascade Specialty Paper. The manufacturing will be done at a 3,000 ton per year facility in Zhuhai which Guangdong acquired from Hiwin Paper Mills. An additional plant will be built and operated. "[The] aim is to meet increasing needs in China (now 100,000 tons per year and expected to grow 15 percent annually) and elsewhere in Asia. 'China's per capita paper consumption is growing faster than anywhere else in the world,' said Boise Cascade chairman George Harad. Boise will hold 60 percent of the equity and Shenzhen the rest.
After overcutting the west side of the Payette National Forest in the Weiser Ranger District and lands to which the corporation holds title -- and then closing its Council, Idaho, mill in 1995 -- the company moved some of the equipment to Guerrero, Mexico. Boise Cascade's Mexican subsidiary, Costa Grande Forest Products, began operating a mill in Papanoa, Mexico, in the state of Guerrero, with logging rights to a million acres of old-growth. In June 1995, a protest by farmers about timber cutting left 17 farmers dead and 20 wounded by the police. The state governor resigned and 28 police officers and four officials were jailed. Boise Cascade pulled out of this operation in 1998.
In 1995, Boise Cascade closed its mill in Council, Idaho and moved some of the mill equipment to Papanoa, Guerrero, Mexico, where its wholly-owned subsidiary Costa Grande Forest Products had rented a formerly state-owned sawmill, and supposedly had exclusive logging rights to a million acres of old-growth pine from the local ejidos (land communes), at a price of $60 a cubic meter -- three times what the local mill had been offering. The plan was to cut 100 million board feet over five years, for export to the United States, and operating a second mill in nearby Tecpan. Boise Cascade was paying Mexican workers $4.75 per day. In June 1995, a protest by farmers about timber cutting left 17 farmers dead and 20 wounded by the police. The Guerrero state governor resigned, and 28 police officers and four officials were jailed. Boise Cascade pulled out of this operation in 1998, "due to an inconsistent and seasonal wood supply."
Boise Cascade sells Russian lumber to customers in western Europe.
In the 1960s and 1970s, Boise Cascade's international operations included paper operations in Guatemala and Costa Rica, Guatemala; Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Turkey, Venezuela, Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, England, Greece, and India., a half-interest in Miramichi Timber Resources, world pulp supplier, New Brunswick, Canada, Triplex Pizano (Columbian plywood and particleboard), Bataan Pulp & Paper Mills and Zamboanga Wood Products (Philippines), and Ebasco Industries (1969 merger of Electric Bond & Share with Boise Cascade; sold in 1973), and electricity production in Chile, Cuba, Ecuador, Panama.
Boise Cascade had 22,154 employees at year-end 1997. Mill closures and corporate restructuring reduced employment from 35,000 in the 1980s; strikes were bitter in Maine and the Midwest.
According to the Council on Economic Priorities, since 1988 Boise Cascade has been charged with 350 "willful" negligence violations of worker safety rules.
In 1989, when Boise Cascade hired BE&K as a non-union general contractor for a $535 million paper mill expansion in International Falls, Minnesota, union members held a wildcat strike, demonstrations mounted, and arson destroyed temporary housing set up for construction workers, and police used tear gas to stop a protest in which rocks were thrown and cars were overturned.
In July 1998, Boise Cascade Corporation announced the closure of three US sawmills in Oregon, Idaho and Louisiana and a plywood plant in Washington -- closures which will cost nearly 500 people their jobs. A third mill in Yakima, Washington will be closed in 1999.
Boise Cascade ranked in the top ten recipients of industrial property tax abatements from 1988- 1997:
Company |
Jobs created |
Total taxes abated |
Exxon Corp. |
305 |
$213,000,000 |
Shell Chemical/Refining |
167 |
$140,000,000 |
International Paper |
172 |
$103,000,000 |
Dow Chemical Co. |
9 |
$96,000,000 |
Union Carbide |
140 |
$53,000,000 |
Boise Cascade Corp. |
74 |
$53,000,000 |
Georgia Pacific |
200 |
$46,000,000 |
Willamette Industries |
384 |
$45,000,000 |
Procter & Gamble |
14 |
$44,000,000 |
Westlake Petrochemical |
150 |
$43,000,000 |
The Boise Cascade and the Environment booklet (March 1997) and the nine one-page Environmental Perspectives factsheets (June 1997) contain claims about environmental progress at the company -habitat enhancement, endangered species, clearcutting, air and water quality, and toxics reduction.
As of the end of 1993, Boise Cascade had been notified that it was a potentially responsible party at 53 federal or state-listed hazardous waste sites. At the end of 1995, Boise Cascade admitted it had "open issues" at 38 sites where it was a potentially responsible party (PRP). At the end of 1997 and 1998, Boise admitted to 33 federal or state hazardous waste sites. The company annually claims that clean-up costs will not have a "material adverse effect on its financial condition" even though its expenses to deal with pollution sometimes exceed its profits. The company claimed to spend $17 million on pollution abatement in 1995, and expected to spend $32 million in 1996; it claimed it would have to spend $200 to $300 million over several years to comply with 1997 EPA rules for utilizing the best pulp and paper technology for reducing toxic bleaching emissions.
Boise claims to practice clearcutting on less than 20 percent of the land it cuts each year.
The following text is from two recent news releases by Boise Cascade.
August 8, 2000: "Boise Cascade Corp. announced today results from an independent, third-party audit to certify approximately 300,000 acres of timberland located in the company's Western Oregon Region. The audit, performed by PricewaterhouseCoopers from May 29 to June 8, 2000, certified Boise Cascade's full compliance with the American Forest & Paper Association's Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFISM) Program standards and assessed the company's proprietary Forest Stewardship Values and Measures. The audit examined forest management practices on timberland owned and managed by the company and on private and public land from which Boise Cascade purchases timber."
October 24, 2000: "Boise Cascade Corp. announced today results from an independent, third-party audit to certify approximately 200,000 acres of timberland located in the company's Idaho Region. The audit, performed by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP from August 28 to September 1, 2000, certified Boise Cascade's full compliance with the American Forest & Paper Association's Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI(SM)) Program standards and confirmed compliance with the company's proprietary Forest Stewardship Values and Measures. The audit examined forest management practices on timberland owned and managed by the company and on private and public land where the company harvests standing timber. Accompanying the audit team as observers during portions of the audit were six representatives from Boise Cascade wood products customers and two members of the independent Forest Stewardship Advisory Council. The independent Forest Stewardship Advisory Council is composed of nationally recognized conservation experts who have agreed to advise Boise Cascade on forest stewardship enhancements. Council members are: George Brown, Ph.D., dean emeritus, College of Forestry, Oregon State University; David Thorud, Ph.D., dean emeritus, College of Forest Resources, University of Washington; and Jack Ward Thomas, Ph.D., professor of wildlife biology, University of Montana School of Forestry, and chief emeritus, U.S. Forest Service."
"In August 1988, the Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise (CDFE) held the Multiple Use Strategy Conference in Reno, Nevada. This event launched the "Wise Use" Movement and established CDFE director Ron Arnold as its premiere spokesman and leader. The conference brought together representatives of natural resource industries, right-wing leaders, recreational vehicle users and members of pro-industry "citizens groups' cultivated by Arnold. From these diverse constituencies, Arnold fashioned a coalition whose purpose, he said, was "to destroy the environmental movement." The strategy was to provide corporate funding and support for "citizens" groups that both advanced the agendas of Arnold's industry clients and offered them a populist veneer. Following the conference, Arnold and his boss Alan Gottlieb produced and published what became the movement's bible, The Wise Use Agenda, which listed the top 25 Wise Use goals. Exxon, Louisiana-Pacific and Boise Cascade were among the corporations listed in a directory of the movement found at the back of the Agenda" and Boise Cascade was among the founding funders of the Center itself.
Boise Cascade continues to fund wise use groups including the Blue Ribbon Coalition and joined snowmobile groups in their lawsuit against protection of national forest roadless areas.
Lobbying expenditures: $576,500
PAC money contributions: $55,000
Soft money contributions: $16,000
1995 |
California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS), one of the largest funds in the United States with nearly $100 billion in assets, introduced a resolution to end staggered terms of directors. Not approved. |
1997 |
Resolution to reincorporate from Delaware to Idaho. Not approved. |
2000 |
Resolution to elect directors on an annual basis in order to improve board sensitivity to important shareholder issues. Approved by shareholder vote. |
Like most large corporations, Boise includes a statement that reveals its attitude toward criminal and civil liabilities: "We are involved in various litigation and administrative proceedings in the normal course of our business. In the opinion of management, our recovery, if any, or our liability, if any, under any pending litigation or administrative proceeding... would not materially affect our financial condition or operations."
Boise Cascade Corp. v. U.S. EPA, 942 F.2d 1427, 1432 (9th Cir. 1991).
Valerio v. Boise Cascade Corp., 80 F.R.D. 626 (N.D. Cal. 1978), aff'd, 645 F.2d 699, 700 (9th Cir.) (adopting district court's opinion), cert. denied, 454 U.S. 1126 (1981).
Boise Cascade was "recently awarded $1.8 million by an Oregon jury, in a suit it filed against the state seeking compensation for having been prevented from harvesting timber where a pair of spotted owls nested. The state has appealed."
Numerous lawsuits arose from the proposed oriented strand board facility in Chile; see Chile section above.