Pine Ridge Native Forest Protection Project

Pine Ridge Native Forest Protection Project is an avoided deforestation project located at the Pine Ridge property, approximately 60km southwest of Cobar in outback New South Wales. It was registered in March 2014 and covers an area of 8,366.81 hectares.

Avoided deforestation projects involve protecting native forests from being deforested or cleared, and preventing the land from being converted to an agricultural system. This standard methodology specifically applies to land where a valid clearing permit was issued before 1 July 2010.

The Cobar region is known for pastoralism, particularly sheep, feral goat, and beef cattle grazing, as well as historic copper and gold mining. The area features a semi-arid climate with highly variable and unreliable rainfall. The local environment is characterised by red earth and silty sand soils that typically support open woodlands and mulga scrub communities.

The project is run by the Bruce family (Mary Rosalind, Phillip James, and Trent Phillip Bruce) with Terra Carbon Pty Limited acting as the project agent. To determine the carbon stock sequestered on the property, allometric equations are applied to tree measurements collected through regular biomass surveys. In May 2015, the project was updated from the 2013 methodology determination to the newer Carbon Farming Initiative Avoided Deforestation 1.1 Methodology Determination 2015. Additionally, the project is active and holds a Fixed Delivery carbon abatement contract with the Clean Energy Regulator.