Catchment Conservation Alliance - Great Barrier Reef Initiative Site #18

Catchment Conservation Alliance - Great Barrier Reef Initiative Site #18 is an avoided clearing project located approximately 40km south of Biloela in the Banana Shire of Central Queensland. It was registered in November 2022 and covers a project area of 1,223.79 hectares.

Avoided clearing of native regrowth projects protect native forests that have historically been cleared and where the landholder currently holds a valid legal permit or right to clear the land again. The project avoids greenhouse gas emissions by foregoing this right and not clearing the native forest. Standard requirements under this methodology include providing evidence of historic clearing, holding a valid clearing consent, maintaining the forest cover, and strictly managing livestock stocking densities and grazing practices to ensure they do not hinder the survival and growth of the native vegetation.

The surrounding Banana Shire region is characterized by a semi-arid to sub-tropical climate with moderate, summer-dominant rainfall. The local environment features fertile soil types, most commonly brigalow clays, cracking clays, and alluvial soils. General land use in this part of the Fitzroy Basin is dominated by extensive cattle grazing, alongside some dryland cropping and regional coal mining operations.

Operated by Terra Carbon Pty Limited (a subsidiary of the environmental markets developer GreenCollar), this project forms part of the broader Catchment Conservation Alliance's Great Barrier Reef Initiative. By retaining native vegetation on historically cleared land, these types of projects often deliver significant environmental co-benefits beyond carbon sequestration. These co-benefits include improving local water quality, reducing soil erosion, and preventing sediment run-off into the catchments that ultimately feed into the Great Barrier Reef.