Blairmore Native Forest Regeneration Project

Blairmore Native Forest Regeneration Project is a Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) project located approximately 75km northeast of Cunnamulla in the Paroo Shire of South West Queensland. It was registered in May 2018 and covers an area of 16,514.88 hectares.

Human-Induced Regeneration projects involve the restoration of permanent native forests on land where vegetation was previously cleared and suppressed for at least 10 years. The standard requirements for these methodologies include changing land management practices to allow native vegetation to recover and reach a permanent forest canopy cover. For this project, the proponent is actively managing the timing and extent of livestock grazing to allow the native forest to regenerate from in-situ seed sources, including rootstock and lignotubers.

The Cunnamulla and broader Paroo region is known predominantly for pastoral activities, specifically sheep and cattle grazing. The area experiences a hot, semi-arid climate with a low average annual rainfall of around 300mm to 400mm. The environmental landscape is typical of the Mulga Lands bioregion, featuring a mix of red earth loamy soils (Kandosols), sandy or stony soils (Tenosols), and cracking clay plains (Vertosols) along the local floodplains.

An interesting note about this project is its successful track record in carbon abatement; recent Clean Energy Regulator data indicates that the project was issued a significant distribution of 51,848 Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) in a single monthly update, highlighting the impressive scale of its active regeneration.