Moora Plains Soil Carbon Project

Moora Plains Soil Carbon Project is a soil carbon project located at Gogango, approximately 65km west of Rockhampton in Central Queensland. It was registered in January 2017 and covers a project area of 3,553.95ha.

Soil carbon projects under the 2021 Measurement and Models methodology involve implementing new or materially altered agricultural land management practices to sequester carbon in the soil. For this project, the standard requirement involves significantly altering the stocking rate, duration, and intensity of grazing to promote soil vegetation cover and improve overall soil health.

The Gogango area is well-known for extensive beef cattle grazing and trading operations. The region's climate is considered sub-tropical to semi-arid, receiving an average annual rainfall of around 615mm. The local environment near the Fitzroy River catchment predominantly features heavy, fertile soils, primarily consisting of deep cracking clays (vertosols) and alluvial scrub soils. These soils are highly responsive to regenerative resting practices.

This project was set up by the Lawrie family to combat ecological decline on their property, transitioning from traditional continuous set-stocking to intensive time-controlled grazing using around 70 distinct paddocks. An interesting fact about this project is that in June 2023, Moora Plains achieved a historic milestone alongside one other property by becoming the first in Australia to receive a large-scale issuance of soil carbon credits from the Federal Government. Despite enduring periods of severe drought, the operation successfully sequestered immense amounts of carbon while simultaneously doubling their cattle density. The project has also strategically utilized multiple method variations since 2014 to ensure it operates under the most up-to-date carbon measurement and estimation techniques.