A NEW project has been launched to encourage people to become outdoor scientists.

The Open Air Laboratories, set up in partnership by South Hams-based charity Moor Trees and Plymouth University, aims to engage with local communities and encourage them to take an interest in native woodlands, plants and animals.

Over the past 10 years, Moor Trees, which operates four native woodland nurseries in Dartington, South Brent, Princetown on Dartmoor and in Plymouth, has planted thousands of native British trees.

OPAL community scientist Bethan Stagg said the new project would carry out soil quality surveys while monitoring how quickly forest flowers such as bluebells establish themselves in native woodlands.

She said: "OPAL is a national programme and Moor Trees and the university are among nine partnerships to have been successful in their bid.

"It's an exciting project. It is a 30 years' project. We'll see how it's progressing in four years' time. It will then be passed on to Plymouth University as a legacy. Undergraduate students will then carry on the project in the future."

For more information about the OPAL project and about Moor Trees visit www.OPALExploreNature.org or www.moortrees.org