Saddleback Plantation Forestry Project (Revoked)

The Saddleback Plantation Forestry Project (Revoked) was a plantation forestry project located approximately 16km from the town of Boddington in the Peel region of Western Australia. Registered in May 2018, the project covered a substantial area of 758 hectares near the Newmont Boddington Gold Mine, situated within the Saddleback Greenstone Belt. The project was voluntarily revoked in November 2022.

The project operated under the Plantation Forestry methodology, which incentivizes the establishment of new plantation forests on land that has previously been used for other agricultural purposes (such as grazing or cropping). This method allows for the commercial harvesting of timber products while generating carbon credits based on the long-term average carbon stocks sequestered by the trees over their growth and harvest rotation cycles. Standard requirements for such projects typically involve high stocking densities suitable for commercial timber production and strict adherence to planting protocols to ensure forest cover is achieved.

The Boddington region is characterized by a Mediterranean climate, historically receiving average annual rainfall in the range of 700mm to 900mm, although the area has experienced a drying trend in recent decades. The local terrain typically features undulating hills with soils dominated by lateritic gravels and clay loams, common in the Darling Range. These environmental conditions are generally supportive of forestry operations and native rehabilitation.

An interesting aspect of this project is its proponent, Newmont Goldcorp Boddington Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of one of the world's largest gold mining companies. The project likely formed part of the mine's broader land management or offset strategies. Notably, the project's Carbon Abatement Contract (CAC436762) was marked as completed in June 2022, just months before the project was voluntarily revoked in November 2022. Registry notes indicate the permanence period had not yet commenced at the time of revocation, suggesting the proponent may have relinquished credits or utilized specific exit provisions under the Carbon Farming Initiative Rule to conclude the project.