Artesian Range-Charnley Carbon Abatement

Artesian Range-Charnley Carbon Abatement is a Savanna Burning project located in the rugged Kimberley region of Western Australia, approximately 205km east of Derby. It was registered in August 2015 and covers an expansive 138,553.11 hectares. The regional land use has historically centered on large-scale pastoral leases for cattle grazing; however, vast tracts of this land are increasingly being transitioned into protected wildlife sanctuaries managed for conservation alongside limited, low-impact pastoral operations.

Savanna Burning projects generate carbon credits through the strategic and planned ignition of savanna areas during the cooler early dry season. This methodology requires careful fire management to reduce accumulated fuel loads on the ground. By systematically removing fuel early in the season, the practice limits the spread, severity, and frequency of uncontrolled, high-intensity wild fires during the hot, late dry season, thereby significantly reducing atmospheric emissions of methane and nitrous oxide.

The surrounding environment experiences a tropical monsoonal climate characterized by high seasonal rainfall, receiving an average of 1,200 mm annually, with over 90% falling in the wet season between November and April. The local terrain is highly topographically complex, featuring steep sandstone gorges, rocky boulder screes, basalt ridges, and black soil plains. These diverse soil types support a rich mosaic of vegetation, ranging from spinifex grasslands and open eucalypt savanna woodlands to protected pockets of monsoon rainforest and vine thickets.

An outstanding feature of this carbon project is its immense ecological value. The project area is operated by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) and forms a critical segment of the 300,000-hectare Charnley River-Artesian Range Wildlife Sanctuary. Incredibly, the Artesian Range is recognized as the only remaining region in mainland Australia to have experienced no modern mammal extinctions. The carbon abatement activities directly support AWC's conservation efforts by protecting vital habitats from destructive late-season fires. This benefits an array of endemic and threatened species such as the northern quoll, golden bandicoot, Gouldian finch, and the rare scaly-tailed possum (Wyulda squamicaudata). In tandem with the strategic burning, AWC actively undertakes large-scale feral animal eradication programs in the area to further restore and protect the ecosystem's pristine health.