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The Chinese government announced the world’s largest ever reforestation programme this week. The plan is to plant trees over 5 per cent of China, an area the size of California. The aim is to prevent soil erosion, disastrous droughts and floods, and reduce the severity of dust storms. The plans also call for nature reserves to be created for pandas, Tibetan antelopes and rare orchids, and for commercial tree farms to replace forest harvesting. Very little of China’s original forests still survive after a century of extensive logging.