Paterson Carbon Project

The Paterson Carbon Project is a soil carbon sequestration project located near the historic township of Paterson in the Lower Hunter region of New South Wales. Situated approximately 20 kilometres north of Maitland and 50 kilometres northwest of Newcastle, the project was registered in December 2020 and covers an area of roughly 218 hectares.

The project operates under the 2018 Soil Carbon methodology, which rewards landholders for increasing soil organic carbon levels through changes in land management. Specifically, this project focuses on re-establishing or rejuvenating pastures by seeding. This activity often involves planting multispecies forage crops into existing pastures to increase biomass and root depth, thereby sequestering more carbon into the soil profile.

The Paterson region is well-regarded for its agricultural productivity, particularly in beef cattle grazing, dairy farming, and horse breeding. The area benefits from a high rainfall climate, receiving an average of approximately 900mm to 1000mm annually. The local geography features fertile alluvial soils along the Paterson River floodplains, transitioning to texture-contrast soils (such as Kurosols and Sodosols) on the surrounding undulating slopes.

The project proponent, AgriProve Solutions, is a prominent developer in the Australian soil carbon market. They have conducted significant trials in the Hunter region using low-disturbance soil aeration technology (such as the Soilkee Renovator) to improve pasture health and soil carbon levels without the need for traditional heavy tillage.