Mulgaroon Forest Regeneration Project

The Mulgaroon Forest Regeneration Project is a Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) project located on the "Mulgaroon" pastoral station, approximately 95km northwest of Cobar and 120km southwest of Bourke in western New South Wales. Registered in April 2015, the project covers a substantial area of roughly 21,693 hectares. The region is part of the state's extensive rangelands, traditionally utilized for grazing livestock such as sheep and cattle, as well as the harvesting of wild goats.

Operating under the Human-Induced Regeneration methodology, this project generates carbon credits by allowing native forests to regenerate from existing seed stocks and root systems. The primary mechanism for this involves suppressing the activities that previously stopped trees from growing, specifically, managing the timing and extent of livestock grazing and controlling feral animals like goats. By reducing these pressures, the project aims to restore permanent even-aged native forest cover to the landscape.

The environmental setting of Mulgaroon is typical of the semi-arid Mulga Lands bioregion. The terrain is generally flat to slightly undulating, characterized by red loam soils. The vegetation is dominated by stands of Mulga (Acacia aneura), along with Belah, Rosewood, and Box woodlands. Rainfall in this area is low and variable, averaging around 350mm annually, which dictates that regeneration is a slow, long-term process reliant on seasonal moisture.

An interesting aspect of this project is its integration with active pastoral management. Property descriptions indicate that while the land has a carrying capacity for livestock (historically around 3,500 Dry Sheep Equivalent), the carbon project likely necessitates periods of destocking or rotational grazing to ensure forest recovery. The presence of "seasonal harvesting of goats" noted in property details aligns directly with the project's feral animal management activity, turning a pest control necessity into a carbon abatement strategy.