Cutting down trees and seeing desert taking their place is not just a contemporary phenomenon.

When the Vikings arrived in Iceland, they cut down the forests to make grazing land for their sheep.

But when the sheep arrived, they ate all the grass - and the result was the biggest desert in Europe.

It has only been since 1943 that the people of Iceland have been trying to reverse the desertification process - after they gained independence from Denmark.

Now, half the population is actively involved in re-forestation.

Boris Maksimov explores how this land of ice and volcanoes is slowly turning greener.

Listen to the programme
	Listen to the programme

First broadcast in July 2005. Produced by Boris Maksimov of the BBC's Russian Service.