Oriners & Sefton Savanna Burning Project

Oriners & Sefton Savanna Burning Project is a savanna fire management project located on the Oriners and Sefton pastoral leases in the western Cape York Peninsula, approximately 240km east of Kowanyama in Far North Queensland. It was registered in January 2015 and covers an extensive area of 306,090.79 hectares.

Savanna fire management projects involve strategic, planned mosaic burning of savanna areas during the early dry season. By conducting controlled, low-intensity cooler fires when vegetation still contains moisture, the methodology reduces the risk and severity of intense, unmanaged wildfires that arise in the late dry season, thereby significantly reducing overall greenhouse gas emissions.

The Oriners and Sefton region falls within the high rainfall savanna zone and features a landscape of wetlands, lagoons, and tea tree ecosystems with alluvial and sandy soils typical of the Mitchell River basin. Historically associated with cattle grazing on pastoral leases, the primary land use of this area is now heavily focused on Indigenous land management and ecological conservation.

The Oriners and Sefton pastoral leases were purchased by the Kowanyama Aboriginal Shire Council in the early 1990s as an investment on behalf of the Kowanyama people. Today, the project is managed by the Kowanyama Land and Sea Rangers alongside Traditional Owners, including members of the Yam family. The project successfully combines traditional knowledge with modern technology to care for Country. The sale of Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) to buyers, such as the Commonwealth Bank and National Australia Bank, provides vital independent revenue, funding community amenities, creating meaningful local employment for Indigenous rangers, and supporting the ecological health of threatened species and native vegetation.