New national forest to be created in the west of England

A new national forest is to be created in the west of England.

Twenty million trees will be planted in parts of Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Bristol.

It will be the first of three new national forests promised by the government to help meet a target of achieving more woodland cover in England by 2050.

The scheme is the first national forest for thirty years and aims to help boost wildlife, tackle climate change and to bring nature closer to people living in urban areas.

But environmental groups have warned much more needs to be done.

What has been announced?

The new "Western Forest" project will be made up of new and existing woodlands across Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Somerset, the Cotswolds and the Mendips as well as in urban areas such as Bristol, Swindon and Gloucester.

It is hoped at least 2,500 hectares of new woodland will be created as part of the project.

It will be the first of three new national forests promised by the government to help meet an official target of achieving 16.5% woodland cover in England by 2050.

However, with only 10% cover achieved so far, environmental groups have warned much more needs to be done to meet tree-planting targets.

Across the UK, the aim is for 30,000 hectares of woodland to be planted every year.

The latest annual figures show about 21,000 hectares were planted, with the vast majority in Scotland and just 5,500 hectares in England.

Andy Egan, head of conservation policy at the Woodland Trust, said there had been "significant progress" on tree planting but that there was still "much more to do" to meet the UK's targets.

The government said it would be investing £7.5million into the forest over the next five years.

Nature Minister Mary Creagh explained: "We will plant 20 million trees in the Western Forest to bring nature closer to people, prevent flooding and support wildlife."