Wespine Carbon Plantations Two

Wespine Carbon Plantations Two is a plantation forestry project located in the Bridgetown-Greenbushes local government area of Western Australia, approximately 90km southeast of the major regional centre of Bunbury. It was registered in July 2021 and covers 251.38 hectares, with the project area expanding progressively through multiple variations across 2023.

Plantation forestry projects involve sequestering carbon by establishing a new plantation forest, converting short-rotation plantations to long-rotation ones, or continuing a plantation that would otherwise be cleared. This project specifically generates carbon credits by establishing new plantation forests and converting existing short-rotation plantations to long-rotation ones for the commercial harvesting of wood products.

The Bridgetown-Greenbushes region is located within the Jarrah Forest bioregion, an area known for extensive timber and forestry operations, as well as dairy farming, beef cattle grazing, and horticulture. The area is classified as high rainfall, characterised by a Mediterranean climate with heavy winter precipitation. Soils across the undulating landscape are typically lateritic gravels, block laterite outcrops, and sandy loams, with heavier alluvial soils found in the deeper valleys.

Interestingly, the project's proponent, Wespine Industries, is a major regional softwood sawmilling company. By investing in long-rotation plantation projects, the company not only secures a sustainable, long-term timber resource for its processing plant but also helps control regional soil salinity and erosion while absorbing atmospheric carbon.