Mt Mulgrave Savanna Burning Project

Mt Mulgrave Savanna Burning Project is a Savanna Fire Management project located at Mt Mulgrave Station, approximately 120km north-northwest of Chillagoe in Far North Queensland. The project was registered in October 2015 and covers a massive expanse of approximately 280,000 hectares, an area roughly the size of Luxembourg.

The project operates under the Savanna Fire Management methodology, which involves shifting the seasonality of burning. By conducting strategic, cool "hazard reduction" burns during the early dry season (when vegetation is still moist), the project aims to reduce the fuel load. This prevents the occurrence of large-scale, high-intensity wildfires during the late dry season, thereby reducing overall greenhouse gas emissions.

The region is defined by its use for cattle grazing on native vegetation, with Mt Mulgrave Station operating as a long-running family pastoral lease. The environment is typical of the Gulf Savannah and Cape York Peninsula, featuring a tropical climate with distinct wet and dry seasons. The landscape includes the alluvial plains of the Mitchell River, characterized by clay and loamy soils, transitioning to rugged ridges formed by metasediments with thinner, skeletal soils. The project area spans across zones classified as both high and low rainfall for the purposes of the methodology.

A notable aspect of this project is the collaboration between the landholders, the Kingsley family (who have owned the station for over four decades), and carbon developers like Corporate Carbon Solutions and South Pole. The vast size of the property necessitates the use of helicopters for both cattle mustering and aerial incendiary work to execute the fire management plan effectively.