Warroo Regeneration Project

Warroo Regeneration Project is a Human-Induced Regeneration project located on Warroo Station, an outback pastoral property situated approximately 185km northwest of Bourke in New South Wales and about 16km southeast of the border town of Hungerford, Queensland. It was registered in August 2015 and covers an area of 30,512.73 ha.

Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) projects involve establishing permanent native forests by changing land management practices to allow native vegetation to regenerate naturally from existing in-situ seed sources, rootstock, and lignotubers. The standard requirement for these projects is to demonstrate the potential to reach forest cover, defined as achieving at least 20% crown cover and a height of at least 2 meters.

The Bourke and Hungerford region is characterised by a hot semi-arid climate and experiences low rainfall, averaging around 300mm annually. The local soils and landscape typically feature a mix of red earth, sand dune ridges, and claypans. The primary land use in the surrounding area is broadacre pastoral grazing, traditionally running sheep and cattle across expansive arid-zone woodlands and shrublands.

This project was established on land that had been cleared of vegetation and where regrowth was suppressed for at least 10 years prior to commencement. To achieve the required regeneration, the proponents actively manage the timing and extent of livestock grazing and humanely control feral animals. The Warroo property has been run by the Dunk family for generations, with the registration varying from Peter Dunk to JDI (Australia) Pty Limited in 2018. Interestingly, Warroo Station is located along a historic line of Great Artesian Basin springs running between Fords Bridge and Hungerford, which historically served as vital watering points and depots for early pioneer pastoralists.