ACT Carbon Forest Project

ACT Carbon Forest Project is a plantation forestry project located in the Ingledene Forest, approximately 25km south of the Canberra city centre in the Australian Capital Territory. It was registered in October 2018 and covers roughly 636 hectares of land near the Monaro Highway, just north of the New South Wales border.

Plantation forestry projects involve establishing and maintaining a new plantation forest for the commercial harvesting of wood products. Unlike permanent environmental plantings, this methodology allows for rotational harvesting, typically of softwoods like Pinus radiata, while calculating the long-term average carbon stocks sequestered over the plantation's life cycle.

The region south of Canberra experiences a cool temperate climate with moderate annual rainfall, generally between 600mm and 700mm, which is highly suitable for softwood forestry. The soils in this district are typically texture-contrast soils, such as Chromosols or Kurosols, characterized by loam overlying clay on the slopes.

Historically, the Ingledene area was a pine plantation that was completely destroyed during the devastating 2003 Canberra bushfires. This project was established to generate Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) to support the ACT Government's carbon-neutral objectives while revitalizing the local timber industry. Furthermore, the re-establishment of the forest is designed to create a recreational hub for the community, featuring mountain biking trails and other amenities. In September 2024, the project's proponent officially changed from the Transport Canberra & City Services Directorate to the Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate.