Yerilla & Menangina Station Regeneration Project

Yerilla & Menangina Station Regeneration Project is a large-scale Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) project located in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia. The project encompasses the Yerilla and Menangina pastoral leases, situated approximately 140km to 160km north-northeast of the major regional hub of Kalgoorlie-Boulder. Registered in May 2018, the project covers a vast area of approximately 475,882 hectares, though variations in 2022 saw some specific land parcels removed from the project area.

Human-Induced Regeneration projects in this context involve allowing native vegetation to regenerate into permanent forest cover by suppressing activities that previously prevented growth. In the rangelands, this primarily involves managing the timing and extent of grazing by livestock (cattle and sheep) and feral animals (such as goats). By reducing grazing pressure, the project aims to allow suppressed native species, particularly Mulga (Acacia aneura) and saltbush, to recover and sequester carbon.

The environment in the Shire of Menzies is classified as semi-arid to arid, with low and highly variable rainfall averaging between 200mm and 270mm annually. The landscape is iconic of the "red centre," featuring red earth soils, sandy loams, and clay pans interspersed with rocky outcrops and granites.

A notable feature of this project is its location near the historic Yerilla ghost town, a former gold rush settlement from the 1890s. The station's homestead is reportedly constructed using materials salvaged from the town's former National Hotel. Commercially, the project is supported by Select Carbon, a carbon service provider acquired by Shell Australia. The project previously held a carbon abatement contract with the Australian Government, which was completed or exited in early 2023, potentially allowing the generated credits to be traded on the open market.