NOVUS WOOD GROUP LP FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE NOVUS Wood Group LP Receives Texas Parks and Wildlife Approval to Test Innovative ECO-DUNE™ Process HOUSTON (July 31, 2000) -- NOVUS Wood Group LP (NOVUS) announced today that it received approval from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to test an innovative natural dune restoration process called ECO-DUNE. A recent FEMA Study concludes that beach erosion is a serious problem and that “One of every four buildings near a coastline will be destroyed or severely damaged by erosion in the next sixty (60) years.”  The ECO-DUNE restoration process utilizes organic material to build an artificial dune that catches windblown sand and provides an organic base to support plant growth. Over time, the dune will grow in height and mass as sea breezes blow sand back and forth across the beach. The plant life is supported and enhanced by the underlying organic material bringing strength and long term stability to the sand dune. NOVUS has a patent pending for the ECO-DUNE process styled “Beach Restoration and Regeneration Systems, Methods and Compositions”.  “We’re very pleased with Texas Parks and Wildlife’s participation in our effort to find a solution to sand dune erosion” stated Steve Ghormley, NOVUS’s Marketing Director. Mr. Ghormley added, “We installed the ECO-DUNE on the Galveston Island State Park on April 4, 2000 and are working closely with Dr. Jim Webb of Texas A&M University to monitor the effectiveness and long-term viability of the process.” ECO-DUNE is comprised of 100% organic material derived from wood material that is  processed to a nominal size of six inches or less. NOVUS has the ability to gather and process several hundred thousand tons of material per year for this project. Steve Ghormley summarized, “We’re very excited about the results of the first ECO-DUNE installation and optimistic that the project will grow and assist Texas A&M University and Texas Parks and Wildlife in their efforts to address the dune erosion problem along the Gulf Coast.” The ongoing results of NOVUS’s ECO-DUNE project will be carried online by  WoodFuel.com, a strategic partner of NOVUS.  About NOVUS Wood Group LP NOVUS Wood Group LP is a Houston-based firm that aggregates, processes and delivers more than 700 thousand tons of wood material product throughout Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas. In addition to woodfuel, the company also produces a broad range of other products, such as, Native Mulch, Colored Mulch, Bark Mulch, Particleboard Furnish, Erosion Control Products and Playground Fall Surface. For more information, visit www.novuswoodgroup.com. About WoodFuel.com WoodFuel.com is an innovative, business-to-business, e-commerce company that links buyers and suppliers of raw wood material online. WoodFuel.com also forms alliances with equipment and transportation companies to provide a virtual pipeline of woodfuel products. For more information visit, www.WoodFuel.com. For more information contact: Steve Ghormley, NOVUS Wood Group LP 281.922.1000, Ext.230  sghormley@novussystems.com