Woodlawn Bioreactor Project

The Woodlawn Bioreactor Project is a large-scale landfill gas operation located at the Woodlawn Eco-Precinct, approximately 10km southwest of the town of Tarago and 40km south of Goulburn in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales. Registered in May 2013, the project operates within the deep open-cut void of a former copper, lead, and zinc mine. This unique setting allows the proponent, Veolia Environmental Services, to deposit significant volumes of putrescible waste, transported primarily by rail from Sydney, into a contained facility that actively manages gas generation.

Operating under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative-Landfill Gas) Methodology Determination 2015, the project generates Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) by capturing methane emitted from decomposing waste. Unlike traditional "dry tomb" landfills, this facility uses bioreactor technology, which involves recirculating leachate (wastewater) through the waste mass to accelerate bacterial decomposition and gas production. The captured biogas is then combusted in generators to produce green electricity, which is fed into the grid, or flared to convert potent methane into less harmful carbon dioxide.

The surrounding region is characterized by a temperate climate with variable rainfall, averaging around 660mm annually, where evaporation rates often exceed precipitation. While the immediate project site consists of rehabilitated mine spoil and engineered containment cells, the broader district is defined by agricultural land use, specifically sheep and cattle grazing on tableland soils. The Woodlawn Eco-Precinct is a notable hub for renewable energy; in addition to the bioreactor's biogas generation, the site hosts a wind farm and solar infrastructure, demonstrating an integrated approach to circular economy principles.

A significant aspect of this project is its successful transition from the original Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI) protocols to the current ERF methodology. It has played a major role in Australia's carbon market, having successfully completed a Carbon Abatement Contract (CAC) in 2022. The facility manages waste dating back to the legacy period (pre-2012) as well as non-legacy waste, serving as a critical piece of infrastructure for managing Sydney's municipal waste while simultaneously rehabilitating a degraded industrial mining site.