McClean Carbon Project

McClean Carbon Project is a soil carbon project located at North Mihi near Uralla, approximately 25km south-west of Armidale in the Northern Tablelands region of NSW. It was registered in November 2020 and covers 402.22 ha.

Soil carbon projects involve implementing new or materially different agricultural management practices to increase the amount of carbon stored in the soil. Standard requirements include adopting eligible activities, such as altering the stocking rate, duration, or intensity of grazing, and undertaking rigorous baseline and subsequent soil sampling to measure changes in soil organic carbon. The project transitioned to the 2021 Estimation of Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration using Measurement and Models determination in March 2025.

The Uralla area is known for extensive mixed farming and grazing operations, particularly fine-wool Merino sheep and beef cattle. The region is considered to have a temperate climate with moderate to high rainfall, averaging around 780mm to 790mm annually. Soils in the area are generally Chromosols (red and brown duplex soils) and granitic loams that are highly suited to pasture improvement and livestock grazing.

This project was developed in partnership with AgriProve Solutions Pty Ltd on a mixed farming property owned by Justin Hoad. To generate carbon credits, the farm's management was significantly altered, expanding from 15 paddocks to nearly 70 subdivisions to allow for highly controlled rotational grazing with shorter grazing periods and longer pasture recovery times. The property also installed additional water infrastructure and replaced synthetic fertilisers with composted organic matter. These biological farming changes have noticeably improved the farm's resilience to extreme weather and drought, culminating in the successful issuance of 5,012 Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) in May 2026.