Cowarna Downs Regeneration Project (Revoked)

Cowarna Downs Regeneration Project (Revoked) is a Human-Induced Regeneration project located on the Cowarna Downs pastoral station, approximately 110km east of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia. It was registered in May 2018 and covers a vast area of 474,781.76 hectares within the Menzies and Kalgoorlie-Boulder local government areas.

Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) projects involve establishing permanent native forests through assisted regeneration from in-situ seed sources, such as rootstock and lignotubers. These projects take place on land that was previously cleared of vegetation and where regrowth has been suppressed for at least 10 years prior to the project commencing. Standard methodology requirements dictate a change in land management practices; for this project, this involved actively managing the timing and extent of livestock grazing to allow native vegetation to recover.

The Goldfields region surrounding the project is primarily known for pastoral leases, specifically cattle and sheep grazing, and mining operations. The area is classified as having a semi-arid climate characterized by hot, dry summers, mild winters, and highly variable, low rainfall. Soils in this semi-arid region of Western Australia typically consist of red sandy loams and calcareous earths.

An interesting note about this project is that it was operated by the pastoral leaseholder, Cowarna Downs Pty Ltd, with Elders Rural Services acting as the project agent. Despite having a nominated permanence period of 25 years and a crediting period designed to run from 2019 until 2044, the project was officially revoked on February 17, 2026, under section 30 of the Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI) Rule.