The compromise was negotiated mainly by the Sierra Club and Sierra Pacific Industries, the state's largest timberland owner.

Active community members with the vision to save the 2,000-year-old redwood, "Big Red", that was scheduled for cutting by industrial timberland owners, launched Sanctuary Forest's first campaign.

The merger, scheduled to close in October, will turn Plum Creek into the second-largest timberland owner in the United States, with holdings of 7.9 million acres, behind International Paper.

Alexander Gilmer (September 7, 1829 - July 30, 1906) was a sawmiller that became one of the United States' most successful individual timberland owners in his era.

It is now one of the largest private timberland owners in British Columbia.

The Timber Association of California, the trade group representing the state's lumber companies and timberland owners, instead issued its own proposal.

He said Sierra Pacific Industries, the company that negotiated last week's agreement with the environmental groups, was the largest timberland owner in the state and was not representative of the industry.

The agreement has been endorsed so far by only one lumber company, Sierra Pacific Industries, the largest timberland owner in the state, which negotiated on behalf of the industry.

Because of his prominence, Mr. Leavell has become an active spokesman for the Georgia Forestry Association, lobbying for tax relief for timberland owners.

He was also a noted pecan farmer, cattle rancher, timberland owner and naval stores operator.