The deal could be valued up to $171 million based on estimated $300 per acre selling price, area land brokers familiar with previous sales of large timberland holdings, tell GlobeSt.com. "If the dirt does for a minimum $100 per acre, the deal will still be in the $57-million range," a land broker who asked for anonymity tells GlobeSt.com.

This would be DNR's second transaction with International Paper. The agency already has contracted to buy 10,393 acres from the Stamford, CT-based company for an average $433 per acre or a total $4.5 million. The DNR is also negotiating to buy another 1,607 acres of timberland from Georgia-Pacific, as GlobeSt.com previously reported. The total 12,000 acres carries a price tag of $5.2 million or about $433 per acre.

The Georgia chapter of the Nature Conservancy, based in Washington, DC, is donating $3.8 million for the 12,000-acre acquisition. The balance of the purchase funds is expected to come from federal grants and private donations."

International Paper representatives couldn't be reached by GlobeSt.com's deadline to learn of other plans the company might have for its timberland disposition program. However, sources familiar with land conservation acquisitions in the Southeast, tell GlobeSt.com they have heard International Paper is considering selling off its entire 8.3-million-acre inventory of timberland in the US, including at least one million acres in the South.