Waverley Downs Regeneration Project

Waverley Downs Regeneration Project is a Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) project located at Waverley Downs station in remote north-west New South Wales, approximately 60km south-west of Hungerford and 220km west of the major regional town of Bourke. It was registered in August 2015 and covers an extensive area of 51,255.30 hectares.

Human-Induced Regeneration projects involve establishing permanent native forests by changing land management practices that previously suppressed tree growth. To earn carbon credits, the regenerating forest must have the potential to reach a minimum height of 2 metres and achieve at least 20% forest canopy cover. This specific project achieves this through assisted regeneration from in-situ seed sources (such as rootstock and lignotubers) on land that had been cleared and where regrowth was suppressed for at least 10 years. The project's active management changes include ceasing the mechanical or chemical destruction of regrowth and strictly managing the timing and extent of livestock grazing.

The remote Paroo River district and Channel Country region surrounding Waverley Downs is characterised by a hot, semi-arid climate with low, erratic rainfall. The local landscape predominantly features sandy plains and red clay loams. Land use in this area is heavily focused on broadacre agriculture, specifically cattle and merino sheep grazing.

In July 2023, the project varied its methodology to Compilation No. 3 of the 2013 HIR determination. The project has also engaged in a Fixed Delivery Carbon Abatement Contract (CAC102223) with the Clean Energy Regulator, which originally committed over 212,000 Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) to the Commonwealth. Furthermore, carbon credits generated by Waverley Downs have been utilised in the corporate sector; for example, the commercial explosives company Orica surrendered over 5,100 ACCUs from this project as part of its 2022 decarbonisation and climate action strategy.