Arbon - Tooligie - Human Induced Regeneration

Arbon - Tooligie - Human Induced Regeneration is a Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) project located near Tooligie, approximately 40km north of Cummins on the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia. It was registered in December 2013 and spans a project area of 6,211.72 hectares.

The Eyre Peninsula is a prominent agricultural region, and the land surrounding the project is largely used for mixed-enterprise farming, including sheep grazing and broadacre cropping of wheat, barley, and lentils. The region features a semi-arid, low-to-medium rainfall climate, averaging 350-400mm of rain annually. Soils in the Tooligie area are diverse but generally consist of grey sandy calcareous soils, sandy loams, and shallow stony soils over calcrete that have historically been prone to wind erosion and low organic fertility.

Human-Induced Regeneration projects involve the establishment of permanent native forests on land where regrowth has been mechanically or chemically suppressed for at least 10 years. This is achieved by ceasing destructive activities, such as land clearing or overgrazing, and actively managing the land to allow in-situ seed sources, rootstock, and lignotubers to naturally recover. The standard requirement for these projects is for the regenerating native trees to eventually achieve "forest cover," which is defined under the methodology as reaching a height of at least 2 meters and a canopy cover of at least 20% across the carbon estimation areas.

Interestingly, the Arbon - Tooligie project holds the distinction of being the first HIR project registered in Australia. Research analyzing the integrity of HIR projects notes that since its inception, tree cover in the project's carbon estimation areas has materially increased from roughly 6% to 43% by 2021, making it a benchmark example that perfectly demonstrates the expected trajectory of an HIR project. Aside from carbon sequestration, the project has resulted in a proliferation of native wildflowers, increased native wildlife populations, and improved drought resilience due to better soil water retention. Originally managed under the names Andrew and Debra Arbon, the participant name was formally varied in September 2015 to Terra Carbon Pty Limited, a leading advisory firm focused on natural climate solutions.