AKD-1

AKD-1 is a plantation forestry project located across multiple land parcels in south-western Victoria, with key sites situated near major regional towns like Colac and Casterton within the Corangamite, Glenelg, and Southern Grampians local government areas. It was registered in May 2020 and covers 930.05 ha.

Plantation forestry projects sequester carbon by establishing new plantation forests or converting existing ones from short-term to long-term rotations for the commercial harvesting of wood products. Standard requirements for this methodology dictate that trees must be planted and managed to achieve a permanent forest canopy, typically defined as reaching standard stocking densities that provide at least 20% crown cover and a mature tree height of 2 metres or more. Project activities for AKD-1 specifically include both the establishment of new forestry and the conversion of an existing short-rotation plantation to long-rotation.

The surrounding south-western Victoria region is well known for traditional agriculture, specifically dairy, sheep, and beef cattle grazing, as well as extensive commercial timber operations. The area generally experiences a temperate climate with moderate to high rainfall (averaging 700 to 1,000 mm annually) and features soils that are typically rich volcanic basalts, sandy loams, and clay-based chromosols.

This project was originally registered by Landari Pty Ltd under the name "Landari AKD 1", but has undergone several notable variations. Additional land areas were incorporated into the project in April and July 2022 following a restructure under the CFI Act. In February 2024, the proponent formally changed to Associated Kiln Driers Pty. Limited (trading as AKD Softwoods), which is one of Australia's largest softwood sawmilling businesses. Following this, the project name was shortened to "AKD-1" in March 2026. According to the Clean Energy Regulator, the project has been successfully issued 11,971 Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) to date, highlighting its successful integration of commercial timber supply management and carbon abatement.