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Three times as many trees to be planted a year by 2024

trees planted in a field in the countrysideImage source, Getty Images
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The government plans to plant more trees each year

Three times as many trees will be planted in England, than are currently planted, to help the environment and tackle climate change.

It's all part of a trees action plan by the government which it will announce on 18 May.

Currently 5,800 acres of trees are planted each year in England - that's roughly the size of 2,900 football pitches.

But by early 2024 the government wants around three times as many to be planted each year. That means around 17,300 acres worth of trees a year - or roughly the size of 8,600 football pitches.

It's expected this would be through tree planting, as well as natural regeneration, where trees grow back naturally on the land.

The plans also include money for new nurseries to produce home-grown, disease-free young trees, known as saplings, ready for planting.

However, campaigners are concerned that this might not be enough. They say that as the goal for England is less than a quarter of the government's UK-wide goal of 75,000 acres (about 37,500 football pitches) of trees by 2024, it may not be enough to deal with nature and climate problems.

And experts say that it's not just about how many trees are planted but making sure that the right types of trees are planted in the right places.

Planting plans in the past have sometimes been harmful to the local environment.