Goonamurra & Carpet Springs Regeneration Project

Goonamurra & Carpet Springs Regeneration Project is a Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) project located at the Goonamurra and Carpet Springs pastoral stations in the Paroo Shire, approximately 70km west of Cunnamulla near the small town of Eulo in South West Queensland. Registered in September 2021, the project initially covered an area of 27,149.89 hectares, with a project area variation registered in May 2023 to remove certain land parcels from the original boundaries.

Human-Induced Regeneration projects involve establishing permanent, even-aged native forests by allowing native vegetation to regrow from in-situ seed sources, such as rootstock and lignotubers. Standard requirements for this methodology stipulate that the land must have been previously cleared of vegetation and regrowth suppressed for at least 10 years prior to the project commencing. The Goonamurra & Carpet Springs project achieves this regeneration by ceasing the mechanical or chemical destruction of regrowth, managing the timing and extent of livestock grazing, and humanely managing feral animal populations.

The surrounding South West Queensland region is traditionally utilized for extensive sheep and beef cattle grazing. The climate is strictly semi-arid, characterized by low and highly variable annual rainfall typically averaging between 300mm and 400mm. Situated within the Mulga Lands bioregion, the local soils are a mixture of red sandy loams on the elevated grounds and self-mulching cracking clays or black soils along the floodplains and nearby river catchments.

Interestingly, both the Goonamurra and Carpet Springs properties have deep historical ties to the region's early pastoral industry and are situated directly above the Great Artesian Basin. The properties feature ecologically significant natural mud springs and "carpet springs," which were vital water sources for early settlers and continue to support unique local flora and fauna. The carbon project is overseen by Warren John Wall and Judith May Wall as Trustees for the Wall Family Trust, with operational support provided by the carbon service developer Climate Friendly Pty Ltd.