The Chinese government has invested more than 400 billion yuan ($59 billion) in the country’s greening plan and grown a total of 2.75 million hectares of forests in the past two decades, the forestry authorities revealed on Friday.

To protect the country’s forests and reduce the risk of erosion and flooding, China implemented the Natural Forest Protection Project in 1998, which included logging restrictions, protected areas and replanting. As a key measure initiated by the State Council, the project was implemented in 16 provinces, including Heilongjiang, Jilin, Hebei, Yunnan, Hunan and Liaoning.

According to an official from the State Forestry and Grassland Administration, China has witnessed both an increase in natural forest coverage and a better ecosystem due to the project implementation. The administration will conduct investigations and make detailed action plans to achieve the greening plan by 2020.