Ashland Inc. has announced that James J. O'Brien, Ashland's chairman and chief executive officer, will undergo surgery to repair a perforated colon resulting from diverticulitis.

Throughout his recovery, Mr. O'Brien will be available on a limited basis. He is expected to return to his full duties in approximately two to three months. During this period, Mr. O'Brien's chairman duties will be assumed by Mr. Barry W. Perry, lead independent director of the board; and his executive duties will be assumed jointly by Lamar M. Chambers, Ashland's senior vice president and chief financial officer, and David L. Hausrath, Ashland's senior vice president and general counsel.

In more than 100 countries, the people of Ashland Inc. (NYSE: ASH) provide the specialty chemicals, technologies and insights to help customers create new and improved products for today and sustainable solutions for tomorrow. Our chemistry is at work every day in a wide variety of markets and applications, including architectural coatings, automotive, construction, energy, personal care, pharmaceutical, tissue and towel, and water treatment. Visit www.ashland.com to see the innovations we offer through our five commercial units — Ashland Aqualon Functional Ingredients, Ashland Hercules Water Technologies, Ashland Performance Materials, Ashland Consumer Markets (Valvoline) and Ashland Distribution.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, such as expectations regarding our chief executive officer and other future events. These forward-looking statements are based upon a number of assumptions, including those mentioned within this news release. Other risks and uncertainties include those that are described in filings made by Ashland with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Forms 10-K and 10-Q, which are available on Ashland's website at http://investor.ashland.com or at www.sec.gov. Ashland believes its expectations are reasonable, but cannot assure they will be achieved. Forward-looking information may prove to be inaccurate, and actual results may differ significantly from those anticipated. Ashland is not obligated to subsequently update or revise the forward-looking statements made in this news release.

SOURCE Ashland Inc.

OJSC Ilim Group received a multi-site FSC Forest Management Certificate, which also applies to the Group’s harvesting operations in Siberia (the Bratsk and Ust-Ilimsk District Branches). This FSC Certificate covers that largest area of certified forest in Russia and the second largest in the world, 3.7 million hectares.

The new Certificate has replaced the two former FSC certificates, previously issued to Ilim Group’s logging companies, OOO IlimSibLes and ZAO ULiL. At present, OOO IlimSeverLes, the Group’s harvesting company in Koryazhma, has a separate certificate covering an area of 1.5 million hectares.

This means that the total area of certified forests of OJSC Ilim Group now exceeds 5.1 million hectares. Ilim Group is Russia’s largest company conducting its harvesting operations in accordance with the FSC international forest certification system.

"We at Ilim Group take our environmental obligations seriously. We make every effort to bring the principles of sustainable forestry into practice. FSC certification is a reflection of our environmental commitments," Mr. Paul Herbert, CEO of Ilim Group comments on the receipt of the Certificate. Earlier on, in 2009, Ilim Group received a multi-site Chain of Custody Certificate which covers three of the Company’s Branches: Koryazhma, Bratsk, and Ust-Ilimsk.

RockTenn announces today a $40 per ton price increase on Classic NewsTM, AngelCote(R) and MillMask(R) coated recycled paperboard products. Price increases are effective with shipments on April 14, 2011.

Nippon Paper Group, Inc. has set up the emergency committee regarding the earthquake of March 11, 2011. Following is the Group's situation the Company pieces out so far.

# Kushiro Mill, Nippon Paper I ndustr ies Co., Ltd.
No damage.
Operation is as normal.

# Hokkaido Mill, Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd.
No damage.
Operation is as normal.

# Ishinomaki Mill, Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd.
Operation is stopped.
There is a lot of soil, sand and so on inside the Mill caused by Tsunami.

We are investigating equipment damage of the Mill.
There is information that an employee was injur ed, however we have not confirmed it yet. Almost all stock in the Mill seems to be damaged.

# Iwanuma Mill, Nippon Paper I ndustr ies Co., Ltd.
Operation is stopped.
Presumably any employee is not injured.
There is information that ceiling was collapsed, however the detail is not confirmed.
We are investigating equipment damage of the Mill.
Half of stock in the Mill seems to be damaged.

# Nakoso Mill, Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd.
Operation is stopped.
Presumably any employee is not injured.
We are investigating equipment damage of the Mill.
Half of stock in the Mill seems to be damaged.

# Fuji Mill, Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd.
A few machines were stopped. But soon we will restart the oper ation.

# Akita Mill, Nippon Daishowa Paperboard Co., Ltd.
Operation is stopped.
We have no expectation to restart.

# Others
Bothe in Sendai-Port and Tokyo-Ariake-Port there seems to be some damages. Regarding Iwakuni Mill, Yatsushiro Mill and other mills, ther e is no damage and operation is as normal. But there is a concern that some problems regarding material procurement and product transportation will happen in some mills. From now on we do our best to confirm all employee's safety and damage of equipment of mills.

A massive 8.9 earthquake struck Japan last Friday, whose epicenter was in Miyagi prefecture north of Tokyo, and sparked a huge tsunami that caused devastation across much of the country's northeastern seaboard, and is estimated to have killed several thousand people.

The current situation at Mitsubishi Paper Mills Ltd. is as follows.

1. Summary of damage
Hachinohe mill (Hachinohe city, Aomori prefecture)
> Regarding the personnel accidents, 6 employees have been injured and sent to hospitals, and no other personnel accidents have been reported.
> Currently, operation has been stopped.
> The ground floor has been under water due to tsunami.
> We are assessing the damage at this point.

Kitakami mill (Kitakami city, Iwate prefecture)
> No personnel incidents have been reported including subsidiaries such as Kitakami High Tech Paper and others.
> Operation has been halted at this point.
> Currently, we are estimating the damage.

Shirakawa mill (Shirakawa city, Fukushima prefecture)
> No personnel injury has been reported.
> Operation has been shut down at this moment.
> We are currently checking the damage.

The Headquarters in Tokyo, Kyoto mill, Takasago mill and Tsukuba R&D laboratory have not been affected by earth quake and tsunami and are still running.

2. Mitsubishi Paper Mills’ damage situation is not immediately affecting Mitsubishi Paper Holding (Europe) GmbH and its related companies (Mitsubishi HiTec Paper Europe GmbH, Bielefeld and Mitsubishi Paper GmbH, Düsseldorf). In case there is an impact on the companies’ financial performance, we will make a further announcement

SCA has been named one of the world’s most ethical companies by the Ethisphere Institute for the fourth consecutive year. According to the Institute, the ranking list recognises companies that go beyond making statements about doing business “ethically” and actually translate those words into action.

“SCA places a strong emphasis on corporate responsibility and we are very pleased about being named one of the world’s most ethical companies. It is recognition of all the employees’ work and how the extensive business of the SCA Group can be managed in a responsible manner,” says Jan Johansson, President and CEO of SCA.

As each year passes, the competition in the Ethisphere rankings intensifies, and 2011 was no exception. Ethisphere reviewed thousands of companies to establish a list of 110 companies that surpassed their industry peers in the area of responsible business. The 2011 list features companies in 38 industries, with 43 companies headquartered outside the United States.

The SCA corporate core values of Respect, Responsibility and Excellence, and its Code of Conduct, are the cornerstone of the Group’s business. SCA regularly evaluates its performance in meeting the standards of the Code of Conduct, and uses Business Practice Reviews to assess business ethics in the company. In 2010, a new global supplier standard for the hygiene business was developed, with one important aspect being alignment with SCA’s values and ethical principles.

Read more at http://ethisphere.com/worlds-most-ethical-companies-rankings/. For further information about SCA’s sustainability work, visit www.sca.com/sustainability, where you can download the Group’s latest sustainability report.

The Government of Canada today announced a series of important investments, totalling $88 million, to protect jobs in Canada’s forest industry. Bernard Généreux, Member of Parliament for Montmagny–L'Islet–Kamouraska–Rivière-du-Loup, was in Cabano today to announce that Cascades’ Norampac-Cabano mill will receive $3 million under the Pulp and Paper Green Transformation Program to substantially improve the environmental performance of the mill.

“Our Government's top priority remains the economy,” said M.P. Généreux. “With the economic recovery still fragile, we will continue to take action to protect and create jobs in Canada, including the important forestry jobs in Cabano.”

“The Norampac-Cabano mill is pleased with the support from Natural Resources Canada,” said Luc Pelletier, the mill’s director. “With this contribution, the mill will be able to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and the particulate matter emissions from its two biomass boilers.”

Despite signs of recovery in some segments of the forest sector, there remains a need to find new and more efficient ways of using wood, wood fibre and its byproducts. Today’s announcement will reduce greenhouse gas emissions while substantially shifting energy use to renewable sources. This initiative is part of the Government of Canada’s plan to improve the environmental performance and competitiveness of Canada’s forest industry.

“With this investment in Cabano, our Government is continuing to implement our plan that supports the transformation of Canada’s forest sector for the benefit of all Canadians,” said MP Généreux. “Our investments are supporting expansion of market opportunities for Canadian forest products, reducing our environmental footprint, improving the competitiveness of the forest industry and helping protect the jobs of the families who depend on our forest sector for their livelihood.”

Today’s announcement builds on the success of many initiatives that are helping to sustain and enhance Canada’s forest industry and the communities that depend on it. Budget 2010: Leading the Way on Jobs and Growth established the $100-million Investments in Forest Industry Transformation program to promote the development, commercialization and implementation of advanced technologies in the forest sector — helping create a world-class industry able to compete in the clean energy economy of tomorrow.

Verso Paper Corp has announced that Mike Jackson, President and Chief Executive Officer, was named the 2011 Executive of the Year by TAPPI and PIMA. This award is PIMA's highest honor and is bestowed on senior-level executives in the pulp, paper or converting industries for excellence in management and outstanding contributions to the industry as a whole.

"During his career, Mike Jackson has continually exemplified the strong leadership skills and vision required for success in a globally competitive business like the pulp and paper industry," notes Ray Heuchling, PIMA Executive Council Chair. "His accomplishments as a leader and his many contributions to the industry make him an outstanding choice for Executive of the Year."

Jackson joined Verso Paper Corp. as Chief Executive in November 2006. Under his leadership, Verso became a publically traded company in less than two years. Before joining Verso, Jackson spent 29 years with Weyerhaeuser Company, where he most recently served as Senior Vice President of Cellulose Fibers, Bleached Board and Chairman of NORPAC, a joint venture with Nippon Paper, prior to his retirement from the company. During his tenure with Weyerhaeuser, Jackson received two Presidents' Awards for outstanding performance in businesses for which he was responsible.

During his career at Weyerhaeuser Jackson served in a series of senior-level management positions including: Senior Vice President of Cellulose Fibers and White Papers (2004 to 2006), Vice President of White Papers (2002 to 2004), Vice President of Business Papers (2000 to 2002), Vice President of Recycling (1998 to 2000), and Vice President of Quality and Human Resources, Containerboard Packaging (1993 to 1998). Prior to that, he served as General Manager of various packaging facilities.

In 2009, the Association of Suppliers to the Paper Industry (ASPI) chose Jackson as its Customer Executive of the Year, in recognition of outstanding contributions to the pulp and paper industry. Jackson is currently on the board of directors of SupplyOne, Inc. and the American Forest and Paper Association (AF&PA). He is Co-Chair of the AF&PA Political Action Committee and served as Past Co-Chair of AF&PA's Printing-Writing Paper Group and its executive committee, as well as Past Chair of AF&PA's Recycling Committee. Jackson is also a past board member of the Electronic Documents Systems Foundation (EDSF).

More and more European governments strive to achieve sustainability. Frans Jacobs, our account manager for Belgium and Luxembourg: “An example; if you read the memorandum called Experience by Inspiration (Ervaring door Inspiratie) written by the Flemish Minister of Habitat, Nature and Culture (Leefmilieu, Natuur en Cultuur), Joke Schauvliege, you will find many similarities with the messages we put on the Satino Black toilet tile.”

One of the passages in the Flemish memorandum reads as follows: ‘We strive to implement eco-efficient production and recycle waste to the maximum possible extent. The use of waste as a valuable raw material for our economy is a focal area in the planned extension of waste policy and in the expansion programme for our green economy’.

Frans Jacobs: “I see this as a reference to the FSC-Recycled and Cradle to Cradle symbols on our toilet tile. We use that tile to support our customers in communicating their sustainability policy. By placing the tile in the toilet areas, customers encourage awareness of and commitment to the concept of sustainability among employees and visitors.”

“Curiosity about our philosophy is growing in the market”, Jacobs continues, “we are receiving more and more spontaneous enquiries about the Satino Black concept. Sustainability is worthwhile, that's something that more and more people are coming to realise.”

Jacobs sometimes uses the Flemish memorandum when hosting visits by customers from Belgium and Luxembourg. “We cannot yet assume that everybody is familiar with the Cradle to Cradle principle, it still requires explanation. Customers who visit us for a day are brought up to date with our philosophy of doing business in a sustainable way. The theory always precedes practical implementation, but I see signs that green ideas and sustainability are increasingly spreading throughout Europe.”

There is also increasing demand for Satino Black hygienic paper in Belgium. Jacobs: “It is a very appealing and unique concept, still the only hygienic paper in the world that is both CO2 neutral and also produced according to Cradle to Cradle principles. It's good to know that we operate in the way the Flemish government favours. Our customers can only benefit from that exposure.”

He refers to the memorandum again. ‘The government will reduce its own environmental footprint and focus more on its task of setting a good example and exploit its influence as a major market player in order to encourage eco-friendly initiatives’. “This is almost literally the same message as on our tile. Increasingly more sustainable, that is exactly what the Flemish government wants.”