Muckleford Farm Carbon Project

Muckleford Farm Carbon Project is a soil carbon project located in Muckleford, approximately 8km west of Castlemaine in the Mount Alexander Shire of Central Victoria. It was registered in April 2015 and currently covers 156.63 hectares, following a variation in October 2024 that removed certain areas from the original project scope.

The project operates under the Sequestering Carbon in Soils in Grazing Systems (2014) methodology. This project type involves undertaking eligible agricultural management activities to build and retain soil organic carbon. Standard requirements dictate changing agricultural practices such as altering stocking rates, adding specific nutrients, or managing pasture. For this specific project, the activities focus on managing grazing and rejuvenating pasture to change grazing patterns and increase carbon sequestration in the soil.

The Castlemaine and Muckleford region is located in a transition zone between the wetter forests of the Great Dividing Range to the south and the semi-arid plains to the north. Land use in the Mount Alexander Shire generally consists of sheep and cattle grazing, rural living, apple orchards (such as those in nearby Harcourt), and historic box-ironbark forests. The local geology features sedimentary bedrock, resulting in undulating low hills with shallow, stony sedimentary soils, as well as some alluvial soil deposits along major waterways like Muckleford Creek.

The project was originally contracted (CAC351966) by the Clean Energy Regulator in April 2015. Corporate Carbon Solutions Pty Ltd acts as the project proponent, with Agriprove Pty Ltd involved as a project agent/participant. As of August 2026, the Commonwealth carbon abatement contract for this project has been successfully completed.