Jawoyn Fire Project

The Jawoyn Fire Project is a Savanna Fire Management project located in the Northern Territory, primarily covering the Jawoyn traditional lands which include the Nitmiluk National Park and parts of the West Arnhem Land Plateau. The project area spans approximately 148,501 hectares and is situated roughly 30 kilometers northeast of the major regional town of Katherine. Registered in February 2014, the project is managed by the Jawoyn Association Aboriginal Corporation, an organization with a long history of caring for country in the region.

Savanna Fire Management projects in this region operate by shifting the fire regime from high-intensity late dry season wildfires to controlled, cooler burns during the early dry season. By strategically burning patches of savanna when vegetation is still moist, proponents create firebreaks that limit the spread of devastating wildfires later in the year. This method generates Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) by calculating the difference in greenhouse gas emissions between the baseline of historical uncontrolled fires and the managed fire regime.

The project operates in the High Rainfall Zone of the Top End, characterized by a distinct wet monsoon season and a dry season. The terrain varies from the rugged sandstone escarpments of the Arnhem Plateau to low-lying woodlands. The soils in this region are typically a mix of shallow, rocky Rudosols on the plateau and deep, red Kandosols (red earths) in the lower savanna areas. Land use in the project area is primarily focused on conservation, cultural heritage management, and tourism, particularly within the Nitmiluk National Park.

A notable aspect of the Jawoyn Fire Project is its connection to the protection of cultural heritage; the strategic burning helps preserve thousands of years of rock art that can be damaged by intense heat and smoke from uncontrolled wildfires. The Jawoyn Association was an early pioneer in the carbon economy, building on the legacy of the West Arnhem Land Fire Abatement (WALFA) model. Additionally, the project has successfully engaged with the Australian Government's Emissions Reduction Fund, having completed carbon abatement contract CAC102455.