A CHARITY is inviting landowners to do their bit to tackle the climate crisis by planting thousands of trees in Trafford.

City of Trees aims to plant three million trees, one for each person in Greater Manchester, in the region within five years.

Thanks to a boost from the government's Nature for Climate Fund, the charity is in a position to support people and organisations to create wooded areas on their land.

Once land is chosen, City of Trees covers the cost of obtaining, planting and maintaining the trees, and it also provides support in additional areas such as site surveys.

The charity's Pete Stringer said: "In Trafford, we know it’s not possible to plant huge woodlands, but by working collectively, sites where we can plant smaller wooded areas can make a huge difference.

"Every tree planted also helps to grow a greener Greater Manchester and the Northern Forest which stretches from Liverpool to Yorkshire."

Cllr Stephen Adshead, Trafford Council's executive member for environmental and regulatory services, added: "Tackling the climate crisis is one of our key priorities and it is only by working with our partners like City of Trees we can start to tackle the devastating impact of climate change.

"The planting of more trees in Trafford is one of the ways we hope to meet the challenge of the climate crisis as they capture rain on their leaves and allow water to drain into the ground which helps to reduce the risk of flooding, a threat which is all too real for so many people.

"Trees also act as natural air conditioning units, which is vital now we are experiencing more extreme heatwave events throughout the year.

"I know land is at a premium in Trafford and Greater Manchester but I would urge any individuals or businesses with plots of land to offer some for the planting of trees to help us combat climate change."

All landowners interested in City of Trees are asked to contact pete@cityoftrees, or to go to cityoftrees.org.uk.