FORT MCMURRAY, Alta. -- A non-profit charity says it will plant thousands of trees in Fort McMurray to replace forested areas that were destroyed in the wildfire last May.

Tree Canada says the program will involve planting trees in publicly owned, natural, forested areas of the city.

The plan is to plant 30,000 seedlings this spring and larger trees in the fall and next year.

The charity says the trees will improve air quality in Fort McMurray and improve people's psychological well-being.

The trees are to include balsam poplar, trembling aspen, willow, and some conifers such as lodgepole pine and white spruce.

More than 80,000 people fled the area last May due to the flames that destroyed 2,400 buildings and torched lots of trees and vegetation.

"We deeply sympathize with residents who lost their homes and had their lives so disrupted by the fire," said Michael Rosen, president of Tree Canada in a release Thursday.

"It is my sincere hope that this initiative will help to bring back a sense of normalcy."

Money for the trees was donated by corporations and individuals.

Melissa Blake, mayor of the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo, said the city is grateful for the program.

"This support will undoubtedly lift the spirits of the entire community and help us restore so much of the natural beauty that was impacted by the wildfire."

The charity says the program will continue next year with a focus on planting trees in residential areas, including Beacon Hill, one of the neighbourhoods hardest hit by the wildfire.