Goonamurra & Carpet Springs Regeneration Project

The Goonamurra & Carpet Springs Regeneration Project is a Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) project located approximately 15 kilometers northwest of Eulo in South West Queensland. Registered in September 2021, the project covers a substantial area of 27,149 hectares within the Paroo Shire. The region is traditionally dominated by pastoral leaseholds used for sheep and cattle grazing, a land use history that defines the baseline for this carbon farming initiative.

Human-Induced Regeneration projects focus on restoring native forest cover on land where vegetation has been suppressed for at least 10 years. In this specific project, the proponents, Warren and Judith Wall of the Wall Family Trust, working with Climate Friendly Pty Ltd, aim to regenerate permanent even-aged native forests. This is achieved primarily by ceasing mechanical clearing (such as chaining or stick-raking) and managing grazing pressure from livestock and feral animals to allow in-situ seed sources like rootstock and lignotubers to regenerate naturally.

The project is situated in the Mulga Lands bioregion, a semi-arid environment characterized by variable, low rainfall and red earth soils. The vegetation typically consists of Mulga (Acacia aneura) and Gidgee (Acacia cambagei) woodlands. The property "Carpet Springs" is notably named after the artesian mud springs found in the area, which are significant ecological features of the Great Artesian Basin. Historical agricultural reports indicate that parts of Carpet Springs were subject to vegetation clearing (chaining) in the 1990s to increase grass growth for stock, a practice the project now reverses to sequester carbon.