Darling River Eco Corridor 5

Darling River Eco Corridor 5 is a Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) project located on Bloodwood Station, approximately 120km northwest of Bourke in the Far West region of New South Wales. It was registered in June 2016 and spans an overall project area of 24,725 hectares.

Human-Induced Regeneration projects aim to establish permanent native forests through assisted regeneration from in-situ seed sources, such as rootstock and lignotubers. To be eligible under the methodology, the land must have been previously cleared of vegetation with regrowth suppressed for at least 10 years prior to the project's commencement. Standard requirements involve mitigating these suppressing factors to allow native trees to reach a mature forest cover of at least 20% canopy density.

The Bourke region is characterised by a semi-arid climate with low and variable rainfall. Land use in this outback region is predominantly extensive pastoral grazing for sheep and cattle. The project area sits within the Mulga Lands bioregion and features undulating sandy country, mulga stands, native grasses, and soils ranging from sandy loams to clay pans.

To achieve regeneration, the project activities include the active management of the timing and extent of livestock grazing, as well as the humane management of feral animals, such as feral goats.

Interestingly, Bloodwood Station is renowned for hosting a lake and clay pan system that contains the richest array of fairy shrimps, clam shrimps, and shield shrimps in the world. The income from the carbon project has allowed the property owners to invest heavily in farm infrastructure like fencing and waterpoints, scale up feral animal control, and employ dedicated staff to help grade and maintain the fragile ecosystem.