Upping the trees

Charity nears five millionth planting with Ethiopian nursery project Bristol-based charity Tree Aid is nearing the five million mark in terms of trees planted in Africa since it was founded by a group of foresters in 1987. Its latest project will help fund the creation of a tree nursery to produce and distribute 50,000 seedlings a year in the Amhara region of Ethiopia. It’s typical of Tree Aid’s focus on what the restoration of woodland can do for communities and conservation. Under the pressure of rapid population growth, forest resources are currently sorely depleted - by the use of timber for construction, fencing and charcoal production, and the clearance of woodland to grow more crops. Forced to burn dung for fuel instead, families deprive themselves of the fertiliser they so badly need to make their soil more productive. The project aims to break this vicious circle of unsustainability.

14 March 2004