Woolibar Station

Woolibar Station (formerly known as AIC HIR WA2 WS) is a Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) project located approximately 44km south of Kalgoorlie-Boulder in the Goldfields region of Western Australia. It was registered in September 2021 and currently covers 77,309.43 hectares, following a project area variation in December 2023 where certain areas were removed from the initial footprint.

Human-Induced Regeneration projects involve establishing permanent, even-aged native forests by altering land management practices to encourage natural regrowth from existing in-situ seed sources, such as rootstocks and lignotubers. A standard requirement of this methodology is that proponents must cease or manage activities that suppress vegetation on land where regrowth has been demonstrably suppressed for at least 10 years prior to the project starting. For Woolibar Station, this is achieved by closely managing the timing and extent of livestock grazing.

The Kalgoorlie-Boulder area is widely known for large-scale pastoral operations, specifically sheep and cattle grazing, alongside extensive gold mining. The region is classified as semi-arid, experiencing low and highly variable rainfall that averages around 250mm annually. The local environment consists of characteristic Western Australian rangeland soils, including red sandy earths, shallow stony plains, and red dirt that supports Eucalypt and Mulga woodlands.

Woolibar Station is an active working cattle station that continues to balance traditional pastoralism with modern carbon farming. In 2019, prior to the carbon project's registration, the station faced severe drought conditions which garnered media and parliamentary attention as the owners were forced to destock and hand-feed cattle to survive the prolonged dry spell. Implementing a carbon project provides a complementary, drought-resistant income stream. The station is also historically significant, serving as the site of the King Battery, an early gold processing battery that was permanently entered into the Register of Heritage Places by the Heritage Council of WA in 2005. The carbon project is managed by proponent AI Carbon WA No.2 Pty Ltd and holds an active Commonwealth carbon abatement contract mapping out an optional delivery of 360,396 tonnes of abatement.