Forests Alive: Protection of Tasmanian Native Forest

Forests Alive: Protection of Tasmanian Native Forest is a pioneering Improved Forest Management (IFM) project located across an aggregation of private properties throughout Tasmania. Registered in April 2015, the project encompasses a significant area of approximately 29,981 hectares. The project parcels are dispersed across the state, with coordinates indicating locations in the Central Highlands near Miena, the Northern Midlands near Ross, and the Southern regions near the Huon Valley. The surrounding land use in these areas typically consists of native forestry operations, conservation areas, and livestock grazing on private freehold land.

The project operates under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative, Designated Verified Carbon Standard Projects) Methodology Determination 2015. This specific method was designed to transition projects originally accredited under the international Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) into the Australian government's ACCU scheme. The core activity involves "Avoided Harvesting," where landholders agree to cease approved commercial logging operations. By converting forests from "logged" to "protected," the project prevents carbon emissions that would have been released during timber harvesting and processing.

Tasmania's environment supports some of the most carbon-dense forests in the world. The project areas are situated in a cool temperate climate characterized by reliable to high rainfall, particularly in the southern and highland zones. The soils are diverse, ranging from fertile ferrosols in the north to the rocky, peat-rich soils of the Central Highlands. These conditions support wet and dry sclerophyll forests dominated by species such as Eucalyptus delegatensis (Alpine Ash) and Eucalyptus obliqua (Stringybark), which provide critical habitat for endangered fauna like the Tasmanian Devil, Spotted-tailed Quoll, and Wedge-tailed Eagle.

This project is notable for being one of the first in Australia to transition from the voluntary market (VCS) to the compliance market (ERF). The proponent, Forests Alive Pty Ltd, successfully managed a large government contract (CAC680735) for this project, delivering over 760,000 tonnes of abatement by its completion in August 2024. In 2017, a variation occurred where specific land parcels were removed from this project and briefly registered under a separate identifier (Lake Echo), highlighting the dynamic nature of aggregated land-sector projects.