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China is on track to meet its 2020 target for expanding the nation’s forests to cover 23 percent of its landmass to combat climate change and soil erosion Cristian Pavon Copa Mundial Camiseta , the State Forestry Administration said yesterday.


But some observers are critical of the massive reforestation, saying China is focusing on plantation forestry and ignoring the restoration of natural forests, which are still being lost.


Since 2008, China has planted 13 million hectares of new forests, roughly the size of Montenegro, taking total forest coverage to 208 million hectares — or just over 21 percent of its landmass.


“We have completed 60 percent of our task to meet the target for forest coverage and aim at 23 percent (of the landmass) by 2020,” said Zhao Shucong Fernando Belluschi Copa Mundial Camiseta , director of the administration.


China launched its reforestation program in 1998, after devastating flooding of the Yangtze River was blamed on the loss of trees which had acted as flood barriers.


Large-scale deforestation in northern China has contributed to loss of topsoil, causing huge storms each year that carry sand and dust.


By regrowing its forests quickly, they now help conserve 581 billion cubic metres of water each year, while storing 8.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide equivalent that otherwise would be released into the atmosphere, said the administration.


Reforestation has also contributed to the growth in China’s domestic timber industry.


But some experts question the sustainability of China’s forestry program, arguing it focuses almost exclusively on plantation forestry and ignores restoration of natural forests.


“The forestry administration only looks at forested land Emiliano Rigoni Copa Mundial Camiseta , but they forget the full picture,” said Xu Jianchu, a professor at the Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences.


He said most of the new forested land was low-quality, and pointed out that while new trees are planted