Two-Year Planning Process Involved Extensive Public Input

SUMMERVILLE, S.C. (December 9, 2009)—MeadWestvaco Corp. (NYSE:MWV) today presented its Regional Master Plan for East Edisto, the 78,600 contiguous acres of company-owned land along the eastern edge of the Edisto River in Charleston and Dorchester Counties. MWV chairman and CEO, John A. Luke, Jr., and Kenneth T. Seeger, president of MWV Community Development and Land Management, LLC., introduced the plan to local media and community leaders.

“MWV has been an integral part of the Lowcountry for more than 80 years and cares deeply about this community,” Luke said. “We are very pleased to have collaborated so closely with the community for their vision in developing a Regional Master Plan for East Edisto that contributes to the region’s economic vitality while preserving the very best of Lowcountry life.”

“More than 1,000 community members attended meetings, submitted comment cards or sent comments via email,” said Seeger. “Thanks to the high level of community involvement, the leadership of our professional planning team, and the collaboration we’ve enjoyed with Dorchester and Charleston Counties’ planning efforts, we are confident this plan is something we will all be proud of for years to come.“

The plan is grounded in four key cornerstones: 1) maintaining East Edisto’s rural character; 2) being environmentally responsible; 3) creating sustainable towns and villages; and 4) providing education and employment opportunities.

MWV expects the plan will take 40-50 years to implement, during which time it will remain grounded in the cornerstones, and the details will be continuously improved by community input as well as the dynamics of the marketplace.

Paul Milana, partner at the lead planning firm of Cooper, Robertson & Partners, outlined the full plan in detail with assistance from experts in transportation, infrastructure, environmental science, sustainability, local cultural resources, economic analysis and market research.

The four cornerstones of the plan presented included the following:

Cornerstone #1 – RURAL CHARACTER – Three-Quarters of East Edisto to Remain Green

• The Master Plan calls for three-quarters of East Edisto to remain green, with a combination of conserved lands, parks, trails, lakes and density restricted rural areas.

• An extensive trail system for walking, bicycle and horseback riding, will connect rural communities with each other and with East Edisto’s natural environment.

• One of the first new facilities will be the Parker’s Ferry Nature Center, a focal point for learning about the wildlife and exploring the ecosystems that are at the heart of life in East Edisto.

• Parts of East Edisto will be reminiscent of the ACE Basin, with large expanses of countryside. Other parts will be like Wadmalaw Island with its woodland homes, farms, and clustered communities like Rockville.

For more information on Cornerstone #1: Rural Character, visit www.EastEdisto.com.

Cornerstone #2 – ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY – Preserve Natural Habitats; Minimize Carbon Footprint and Energy Usage

• East Edisto will be guided by a set of environmental goals including conservation of water and electricity, green buildings and alternative methods of transportation.

• The intention: East Edisto’s developed areas, when compared with like-sized developed areas in this region, will be more energy efficient, leave a smaller carbon footprint, and have less impact on the region’s roads

• Homes, offices, shops, schools, and parks will all be in close proximity creating more sustainable towns and villages by saving energy and reducing vehicle traffic and impact on local roads. Same is true for bicycle-friendly roads, trail systems, park-and-ride, shared parking facilities, internal shuttles, and neighborhood electric vehicles.

For more information on Cornerstone #2: Environmental Responsibility, visit www.EastEdisto.com.

Cornerstone #3 – SUSTAINABLE TOWNS AND VILLAGES – People Can Live, Work, Learn and Play in East Edisto Communities

• East Edisto’s towns and villages will feel like Beaufort, Historic Summerville, and the Old Village of Mount Pleasant, with tree-lined streets, village shops, and houses with wide porches.

• The first two villages in East Edisto’s Master Plan are Pine Hill and Ashley Ridge, both situated close to Summerville.

• Pine Hill will resemble Historic Summerville and include an open-air produce market, a large park, and a shared campus for Trident Technical College and a technical high school. Homes and front porches will either be lakeside, or within a five-minute walk of open water. Shops, offices, and a K-8 school and a series of neighborhoods with a diverse mix of homes, recreational sites, and greenways will also be present.

• Ashley Ridge will be about three miles southeast of Pine Hill and connected by a country road. Green and covered in forestland with a large park, more than half will remain wooded. A 25-acre park and an elementary school will be centerpieces of the village. Architecturally, the inspiration for Ashley Ridge comes from Lowcountry communities like Beaufort and Walterboro, with higher density housing near the village center.

For more information on Cornerstone #3: Sustainable Towns and Villages, visit www.EastEdisto.com.

Cornerstone #4 – EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

• Throughout East Edisto, schools and offices will be located close to where people live. The first phase includes two commerce parks, several public schools, a shared campus for Trident Technical College and a technical high school, a site for a middle school of the arts, and a nature center.

• Access to community schools will be central to East Edisto, with new elementary and middle schools within an easy walk or bike ride from the majority of the homes, There will also be a new high school in a future town in the northern half of East Edisto.

• One of the first employment opportunities will be the Pine Hill Commerce Park, along Highway 17A in the northern part East Edisto, and the Spring Grove Commerce Park, along Highway 17 in the southern part of East Edisto.

• In the village centers of Pine Hill and Ashley Ridge there will be shops and restaurants, many with space for residences above.

East Edisto’s towns and villages will be market-driven and developed over time, growing only as the region grows and absorbing perhaps around 10 to 15 percent of that growth over the next several decades.

“This Regional Master Plan is a vision,” said Seeger. “We encourage the public to stay involved as the plan evolves over time, so that together we can be responsible stewards of this land, preserve the best of Lowcountry living, and also contribute to the region’s economic vitality.”

MWV will present the East Edisto Regional Master Plan at a series of public meetings at which community members will have the opportunity to discuss the plan with leaders of the planning team. Regular updates on meetings are available at www.EastEdisto.com.

Meetings Schedule - Neighborhood/Community Group Meetings

1) Summerville

Location: Summerville High School Cafeteria, 1101 Boone Hill Rd.

Date and Time: Wednesday, December 9, 6:30pm

2) Clubhouse/Geddisville/County Line Road/Ravenwood

Location: Sand Hill Family Life Center, 1961 Summers Dr., Ridgeville

Date and Time: Monday, December 14, 6:30pm

3) Hollywood/Ravenel/Adams Run

Location: Baptist Hill High School Gym, 5117 Baptist Hill Rd., Hollywood

Date and Time: Tuesday, December 15, 6:30pm

4) Ridgeville/ Givhans

Location: Ridgeville Community Center Gym, 105 School St., Ridgeville

Date and Time: Wednesday, December 16, 6:30pm

South Carolina Media Contact

Jennifer Howard tel: 843-851-4610 jennifer.howard@mwv.com

About MWV

MeadWestvaco Corporation (NYSE: MWV), provides packaging solutions to many of the world’s most-admired brands in the healthcare, beauty and personal care, food, beverage, media and entertainment, home and garden, tobacco, and commercial print industries. The company's businesses also include Consumer & Office Products, Specialty Chemicals, and the Community Development and Land Management Group, which sustainably manages the company’s land holdings to support its operations, and to provide for conservation, recreation and development opportunities. With 20,000 employees worldwide, MWV operates in 30 countries and serves customers in more than 100 nations. MWV manages all of its forestlands in accordance with internationally recognized forest certification standards, and has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for the sixth consecutive year. For more information, please visit www.mwv.com.

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