Prince Regent NP - Savanna Burning Project

Prince Regent NP - Savanna Burning Project is a Savanna Fire Management project located in the Prince Regent National Park in the remote Kimberley region of Western Australia, approximately 200km northeast of the town of Derby. It was registered in April 2016 and covers a massive 576,379.43 hectares. The regional land use consists primarily of protected conservation areas and traditional Indigenous land management, as the park is an internationally recognized UNESCO biosphere reserve.

Savanna fire management projects involve the strategic, planned burning of savanna areas during the early dry season. By deliberately lighting cool, controlled fires early in the year, project proponents reduce the accumulated vegetation fuel load. This standard requirement mitigates the risk of massive, uncontrollable, and highly pollutive wildfires during the hotter, more volatile late dry season.

The Prince Regent National Park environment experiences a tropical monsoon climate and falls into the high rainfall savanna classification, recorded as one of Western Australia's wettest areas. The region's rugged topography is characterized by deep river gorges, expansive ancient sandstone plains, and volcanic soils.

Originally registered under the name "Wildlife protection and conservation through improved ecosystem scale management," the project was officially renamed in March 2018. The project's proponent has transitioned through multiple state departments over its lifecycle, shifting from the Department of Parks and Wildlife to the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, before finally transferring to the Conservation and Land Management Executive Body in 2020. Operating in an area of profound cultural significance, the project has successfully completed two carbon abatement contracts (CAC974752 and CAC388920). The ACCUs generated from these activities help to fund ongoing joint management operations with the traditional owners of the land, the Uunguu (Wunambal) people.