Howson Carbon Project 4

Howson Carbon Project 4 is a soil carbon project located in the Banana Shire of Central Queensland, approximately 25km southeast of the town of Banana. It was registered in March 2022 and covers an area of 195.29 hectares.

The project operates under the Estimation of Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration using Measurement and Models methodology. This type of project involves implementing new or materially different land management activities to increase carbon stored in agricultural soils, and calculating net abatement by measuring changes in soil organic carbon content through baseline physical soil sampling and subsequent measurement or hybrid modelling.

The Banana region is known for extensive agricultural land use, particularly beef cattle grazing, fattening, and some cropping. The area experiences a semi-arid to subtropical climate characterized by summer-dominant rainfall averaging between 650mm and 730mm annually. Soils in the region are predominantly highly fertile cracking clays (Vertosols) and soils overlying basalt, which are capable of supporting high-quality introduced pastures.

Project activities for Howson Carbon Project 4 include altering the stocking rate, duration, or intensity of grazing to promote soil vegetation cover and improve soil health. Additionally, the project focuses on re-establishing or rejuvenating pasture by seeding or pasture cropping. This not only sequesters carbon but improves overall agricultural productivity and resilience. Notably, the proponent, AGRIPROVE SOLUTIONS CO NO.1 PTY LTD, operates a large suite of similar carbon developments in the area, running sequentially from Howson Carbon Project 1 through at least 15.