Paraway Pastoral Beef Herd Management Project

The Paraway Pastoral Beef Herd Management Project is a large-scale agricultural aggregation project spanning multiple cattle stations across Queensland and New South Wales. While the project covers a diverse portfolio, its primary operations are centered on Paraway Pastoral’s vast rangeland properties in Northern Australia, including the flagship Davenport Downs station (situated approximately 350km south of Mount Isa in the Channel Country) and Gregory Downs (located in the Gulf Country roughly 100km south of Burketown). Registered in April 2016, this project was the first of its kind to be registered under the Emissions Reduction Fund.

The project operates under the "Beef Cattle Herd Management" methodology. This method credits farmers for reducing the emissions intensity of their beef production, essentially lowering the amount of methane and nitrous oxide produced per kilogram of live weight. Paraway achieves this by optimizing herd efficiency: strategies include reducing the average age of the herd, decreasing the number of unproductive animals (such as infertile breeders), and changing the ratio of livestock classes to accelerate weight gain. By turning off cattle younger and heavier, the project reduces the total lifetime emissions of the animals relative to the meat produced.

Given the geographic spread of the project, the environmental conditions vary significantly. The Gulf Country properties, such as Armraynald and Gregory Downs, experience a tropical savanna climate with distinct wet and dry seasons, characterized by clay plains and native woody vegetation. In contrast, the Channel Country properties like Davenport Downs operate in a semi-arid environment dependent on the boom-and-bust flood cycles of the Georgina and Diamantina river systems. These areas feature fertile alluvial soils that support rapid pasture growth following floods, essential for finishing cattle.

An interesting note is that Paraway Pastoral used this project to spearhead an "aggregation model." By pooling administrative and compliance resources, they partnered with Corporate Carbon and Natural Carbon to allow smaller graziers to participate in the carbon market, significantly reducing the barriers to entry for family-owned farms.