Afforestation projects succeed in greening up China

China has witnessed remarkable growth of tree coverage with the implementation of afforestation projects, a senior forestry official said on Tuesday, National Tree Planting Day.

The forest coverage rate in China has increased by nearly 10 percentage points in the past four decades, with the world's largest planted forests and an 80 percent expansion of forest areas, said Zhang Jianlong, head of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.

The green coverage rate in rural areas has reached 20 percent, while in urban areas it has hit 37.9 percent.