Environmental Plantings in NPWS Reserves - Pilot Project 1

Environmental Plantings in NPWS Reserves - Pilot Project 1 is an environmental planting project spanning multiple National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) reserves across New South Wales. Due to its multi-site nature, the project areas are located across diverse regions, including the Snowy Mountains near Cooma, the Southern Tablelands near Yass, the Mid North Coast near Kempsey, and the North West plains near Moree. It was registered in April 2016 and covers a combined area of 748.11 ha.

Environmental planting projects involve establishing permanent plantings of a mix of native trees, typically planted at a density of at least 200 stems per hectare to achieve permanent forest canopy cover. The methodology strictly requires this planting to occur on land that was predominantly used for agricultural purposes for at least five years prior to project commencement.

Because the project spans multiple distinct regions, the surrounding land uses and environmental conditions vary significantly. The Cooma and Yass areas are historically known for sheep and cattle grazing, experiencing moderate to alpine rainfall with shallow, rocky, or basalt-derived soils. The Kempsey region on the coast features forestry and dairy farming with high subtropical rainfall and coastal clay or sandy loam soils. In contrast, the Moree plains are semi-arid with deep, cracking black clay (vertosol) soils, and have traditionally been used for broadacre cropping and cotton.

This project was set up as a multi-regional government pilot designed to repurpose formerly agricultural land that has been acquired and incorporated into the NPWS estate, restoring it back to native forest using local tree species. The project is supported by an active Carbon Abatement Contract (CAC558798) with the Clean Energy Regulator to deliver 79,224 tonnes of fixed-delivery abatement. Notably, the project had its areas amended via a variation in July 2018 and its proponent was updated in December 2025 to the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water.