Mullagalah Regeneration Project

Mullagalah Regeneration Project is a Human-Induced Regeneration project located approximately 50km southeast of Bourke in New South Wales. It was registered in March 2015 and covers an expansive 11,326.47 hectares.

Human-Induced Regeneration projects involve regenerating native forests by changing land management practices to allow suppressed in-situ seed sources to grow. The standard requirement under the scheme is that the regenerating native vegetation must reach forest cover, typically defined as achieving a minimum of 20% canopy cover and a height of at least 2 metres. This project establishes permanent native forests through assisted regeneration from in-situ seed sources (including rootstock and lignotubers) on land that was previously cleared of vegetation and where regrowth was suppressed for at least 10 years. To achieve this, the proponents manage the timing and extent of livestock grazing alongside the humane management of feral animals.

The Bourke area is known for its pastoral operations, primarily sheep and cattle grazing, situated within a semi-arid outback landscape. The region experiences a hot, semi-arid climate with a low average annual rainfall, typically between 200mm and 400mm. The soils in this region are predominantly red and black alluvial clays, red earths, and desert loams.

The project was contracted in April 2015, and contract CAC364235 has now been completed. In August 2023, the project's method was officially updated from Compilation No. 1 to Compilation No. 3 of the 2013 Methodology Determination.

Interestingly, the project area shares its name with the Mullagalah breccia pipe, an unusual local geological formation containing baryte-bearing hybrid basalts formed at extreme mantle depths. Furthermore, the project has drawn attention in climate accountability discussions. After independent research raised questions regarding the project's compliance and impact on vegetation cover, advocacy groups successfully pressured energy retailer Red Energy, which had purchased 5,000 ACCUs from the project, to rebrand its "carbon neutral" gas product to "offset gas".