Woorinen Recovery Project (Revoked)

The Woorinen Recovery Project (Revoked) is an environmental planting project located in the Northern Murray Mallee region of South Australia, approximately 45km south of Waikerie and west of Loxton. Registered in September 2015, the project spanned approximately 263 hectares of land that had previously been cleared for agriculture. The project area sits within a semi-arid zone characterized by sandy dune systems and low rainfall, where the landscape is dominated by dryland farming and remnant patches of Mallee vegetation.

The project operated under the Carbon Farming Initiative's 2012 environmental planting methodology. This method requires the permanent establishment of native tree species on cleared land to sequester carbon. In this specific instance, the project activities focused on restoring 'Triodia shrubby dunes', a vegetation type critical for local biodiversity. The planting design was tailored to support the recovery of the threatened Malleefowl (Leipoa ocellata), aiming to expand habitat connectivity within the landscape.

Notable for its connection to broader conservation efforts, the Woorinen Recovery Project was part of the "Habitat 141" initiative, a large-scale visionary corridor aimed at restoring links between major national parks across South Australia and Victoria. It was delivered in collaboration with the Murray Mallee Local Action Planning Association and funded in part by the Native Vegetation Council. Although the project successfully completed significant revegetation works, restoring hundreds of hectares of habitat, it was voluntarily revoked from the carbon credit scheme in July 2018. This suggests the project met its ecological goals through alternative funding or mechanisms rather than continuing solely as a carbon offset generator.