National forest cover grows to 25%

China registered growth in its forest stock volume and the total output value of its forestry and grassland industry in 2025, according to an annual report from the National Greening Commission.

The report was unveiled on Thursday, which marked the country's 48th National Tree Planting Day.

China's total forest stock volume reached nearly 21 billion cubic meters in 2025, up from more than 20 billion cu m in 2024, the report said. The national forest coverage rate stood at 25.1 percent at the end of 2025, while the combined forest and grassland coverage rate exceeded 56 percent.

At a news conference on Thursday, Zhang Liming, director of the ecological protection and restoration department at the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, highlighted the role of broad participation in voluntary tree-planting campaigns in achieving the gains.

"Last year, when participating in the capital's voluntary tree-planting activity for the 13th time, General Secretary Xi Jinping further emphasized that voluntary tree planting is a nationwide initiative that must be carried on for generations," Zhang said.

A total of 94,000 officials and staff members from central and national government departments participated in voluntary tree planting in 2025, planting 340,000 trees, he said.

Leaders of local authorities and military units at various levels also participated in tree planting activities in their respective localities.

Meanwhile, 3,071 "national voluntary tree planting" bases have been established across the country, he said. In total, the bases organized 62,000 tree-planting activities throughout 2025.

Lu Lihua, deputy head of the land space ecological restoration department at the Ministry of Natural Resources, underscored the role of the Shan-Shui Initiative in advancing national afforestation. Launched in 2016, the initiative — whose name translates to "mountains and rivers" — is an ambitious nationwide effort to restore 10 million hectares of natural space, including mountains, forests, grasslands and waterways, by 2030.

To date, the ministry and other national bodies have guided 29 provincial-level regions in implementing 52 Shan-Shui projects, she said.

Of these, 27 were carried out between 2021 and 2025, supported by 53 billion yuan ($7.7 billion) in central government funds. The initiative has restored more than 5.5 million hectares of land, including over 1.5 million hectares of forest and grassland.

According to the report, the total output value of the forestry and grassland industry reached nearly 11 trillion yuan in 2025, up from 10.17 trillion yuan in 2024. Through 2025, China completed nearly 3.6 million hectares of afforestation and restored and treated 4.9 million hectares of degraded grasslands.

The report also highlighted growth in forest — and grassland-based businesses, with the ecotourism sector recording more than 3 billion tourist visits nationwide in 2025. International trade in forest products also remained strong, with the total value of imports and exports surpassing $180 billion last year.

houliqiang@chinadaily.com.cn