Towns losing trees warning from Natural Resources Wales

Trees have been lost in a quarter of towns in Wales between 2006 and 2009, according to what Natural Resources Wales (NRW) says is the world's first survey of trees in urban areas.

The Climate Change Commission Wales meeting in Wrexham on Thursday will hear that more than 11,000 large trees were lost during that time.

NRW said trees provide habitats for wildlife, reduce flood risk and air pollution, and help counteract climate change.

Dafydd Fryer, an urban forest architect for NRW, said the study would help the management of trees which he said were "essential to life".

He told BBC Radio Wales there was a marked contrast between valleys towns and coastal areas.