U-Haul Customers Give $1 Million to Charity

PHOENIX, June 22, 2009 — U-Haul and The Conservation Fund today announced a major milestone in the effort to fight climate change and restore America's forests with the donation of more than $1 million from U-Haul customers to The Conservation Fund's Go Zero(R) program which plants trees to trap carbon dioxide emissions.

In April of 2007, U-Haul began partnering with The Conservation Fund to facilitate customers' donations at checkout in order to offset carbon emissions generated from in-town and out-of-town moves. In just two years, more than 287,000 U-Haul customers have elected to offset their emissions. The Conservation Fund has used those donations to plant 133,000 trees that are expected to trap 156,000 tons of carbon dioxide as they mature.

"By leveraging our human, technical, financial and business resources, U-Haul and our customers have made a real difference in protecting the environment and mitigating our greenhouse gas emissions," stated John "J.T." Taylor, president of U-Haul International, Inc. "U-Haul customers should be applauded for their support of The Conservation Fund, and for benefiting the communities where we live and serve."

Thus far, the oak, hickory and pecan seedlings are improving habitat, air and water quality at two national wildlife refuges, Marais des Cygnes National Wildlife Refuge in Kansas and Red River National Wildlife Refuge in Louisiana. The Fund's carbon-sequestration project at Red River National Wildlife Refuge recently received Gold Level Validation; the highest level granted under the standards of the Climate, Community and Biodiversity Alliance.

"The support and generosity from U-Haul and its customers for this program is unprecedented," said Jena Meredith, director of The Conservation Fund's Go Zero program. "Based on the extraordinary success and high participation rates, climate change and habitat loss are obviously two issues that resonate strongly with U-Haul and its customers. Their donations to The Conservation Fund result in real, measurable results for our nation's air quality, forests and wildlife."